21 Days
by wolfofsheep
Summary: The Tallex Cormus asteroid is headed for Earth. There are only 21 days left until the annihilation of life, itself. With Leonard off to New Jersey and Penny with only a quarter of a tank of gas, Sheldon must find a way to Texas to see his family one last time... with Penny as a companion. Shenny story. Rated M for MANY MANY things. (smiles)


_A/N_

_This story was done for Jislane35, I believe. I just happened to find it on one of my flash drives and squealed. I had done this story after seeing 'Seeking a Friend for the End of the World' in theaters (yes, this story is that old)._

_I am super swamped right now. I have a job that works me 12 hours for 6 days and I have NO time to type or write or even pee, so you will see my stories taking longer and longer to update. The only reason I got this one was because it was already written. XD_

_Anyways, this is rated M for language and sex and blood and violence, not particularly in that order. There are moments with Spanish written with no translations: I am totally sorry if they are horrendously wrong, I google translated the heck out of it, so blame google._

_I want you to know that I did a LOT of research on the roads because I live in North Carolina, so if they are wrong... Sue me._

_Anyways, I really hope you enjoy this and if you don't... I really don't care. K? K._

* * *

**21 Days…**

Penny felt as if she were in her own little parallel universe. She stood in the middle of her section at the Cheesecake Factory and barely noticed the mass hysteria flowing all around her. Her attention was on the TV in the corner that had just announced the 'End of the World'. Something so cliché as a rock plummeting towards the Earth, twice the size of the moon, would be the last thing Penny would believe would happen, but… there it was. In 21 days, the Earth would be destroyed. She felt so numb as a clambered whisper seeped from her lips, "Three weeks…"

As if the force field that held her in that one spot finally let her go, Penny dropped the circular drink tray from her hand and before it could bounce on the ground; her hand pushed the glass door open and she was gone.

Sheldon walked with his brisk pace down the hall heading to his office. His full attention was on his appointment book; going over his entire itinerary for the upcoming month. He was completely unaware of any of the actions going on around him as he strolled down the halls of Caltech. Coworkers, students, professors… some were laying in a fetal position, some had other coworkers pressed against the wall and fused at the mouth and hips, some were locked in a brutal fight, some were standing in corners and chanting in panic, and some were even hanging themselves or jumping out of the windows.

It wasn't until Sheldon pushed open his door, closed it behind him, and attempted to move around his desk that he realized all of his stuff was gone. His shock led him back outside into the hall to accuse anyone that was around that he finally noticed the chaos that had ensued within the building.

"What in Batman's utility belt is going on here?"

"Armageddon, but without Bruce Willis."

Raj's sudden voice made Sheldon jump a little and turn to find him clamping on to two bottles of fowl smelling rum. Raj downed a gulp from each bottle before starting to laugh a little. Sheldon shook his head and cringed at the smell of booze.

"It's bad enough that movie even exists. Could you tell me where all my stuff has gone?"

"Dude! You're worried about your STUFF? Where have you been? I predicted this about a month ago, but wasn't taken seriously until it was too late. The Tallex Cormus asteroid is headed straight for Earth with a 99.5 percent chance of impact and total annihilation of life. We have about 20 something days to live. I plan on LIVING!" Raj downs more liquor by tossing his head far back. When his head comes back down, Sheldon was gone and all that was left of his presence even being there was his planner uncomfortably open on the floor.

* * *

**19 Days…**

Penny paced her apartment from front door to kitchen with her cell phone to her ear and her free hand's index finger's nail in her mouth. She had never felt this much panic in her life. It had been more than 24 hours since she had slept or even been to her bedroom. Yesterday had been a blur. She remembers unlocking 4A with her spare key and finding it completely empty. Leonard's and Sheldon's bedrooms were untouched. There was no note so she moved to her cell phone where she learned that her service was gone.

As of this moment, she was STILL trying to reach her parents on her cell, but she kept getting a three toned melody and a woman's voice telling her that her service was temporarily suspended and apologizing for the inconvenience. Penny screamed at in utter frustration and tossed the smart phone into the wall finally giving into her frustration. She panted and tried to fight the tears that were quickly building a puddle at the corner of her eyes. She sprawled into the chair of her dining table and buried her face into the curve of her arm and let out a desperate bawling.

Airports were closed down, bus and train stations were being raided, traffic was congested and dangerous, and any other type of commute was murderous and unpredictable. People had gone completely insane and all Penny wished for; all Penny WANTED was a 'Someone'. She was utterly alone. No family, no boyfriend, no friends; not even a neurotic neighbor. The world was going to end and she was going to die alone.

It was a throbbingly violent crash that made Penny's sobs die down. She lifted her head and looked at her closed front door and sniffled. There was another crash and a sickened crunch along with a discernible 'cry of war' yell that was coming from across the hall. Penny gasped and let out a shine of hope from her voice, "Leonard?"

She pushed herself up quickly and rushed to the door. Not a single possible thought of it being a group of rapist or looters over there had crossed her mind. She yanks open her door and sees that 4A was wide open. She takes a few steps but stops dead in the middle of the small hallway as she sees stray papers and Sheldon's laptop crashing into the bookcase from across the room from her position. She hears a lowered, but overly irritated, voice and moves cautiously to the door. She leans to her left at the door's frame to look at Leonard, but instead she saw the back of Sheldon's dejected form.

His lanky body was tense with frustration. His hands were palmed against the only exposed wood of the table. Balled up papers, scattered folders, splayed wires, and pieces of a shattered coffee mug coated the top of the once extremely organized desk. His head was bowed in a stressful pose and he was panting in anger.

Penny couldn't see his face but it was the state of the apartment that worried her. The coffee table and the wooden chairs were turned over. One of the chairs was broken into pieces and thrown all over the apartment along with the balls of his DNA model. His desk beside the window was gone and seemed to have been thrown OUT the window. The fake leather couch had slash marks and white guts spilling out of it and the Game of Thrones sword, that seemed to be the culprit, was embedded deep in Sheldon's spot. As Penny slowly made a small step inside, she noticed that his landline phone was crushed into pieces at her feet. She looked behind her a ways and saw a crumbling hole where it had impacted.

In the first time of knowing Sheldon, Penny was afraid. He had never seemed so animalistic to her. Her forward momentum froze and that fear took over. She swallowed deeply and kept her eye on the unchanging physicist, but her flip-flops crunched against pieces of chipped drywall and she stopped on a dime. She grits her teeth and cursed under her breath. She stared at Sheldon's form, waiting for the dragon, but when he turned his head all she saw was a broken man. His eyes were red and almost sunken in and they lit up only a little as they found her.

"P-Penny… you're still here!"

Penny snapped out of her cocoon of paranoia and put on one of her famous fake smiles, "Obviously."

Sheldon didn't move; only stared at her intently. It made her nervous, again. A few awkward moments passed and Sheldon finally let out a sigh, "Yes, well, I apologize for the mess. I-I was at a low point."

She watched his face as he spoke. He had averted his eyes and bowed his head slightly, but she saw the slightest hint of a smile on his face then it vanished as he looked up with his normal scowl, "I have been unsuccessful in communicating with my mother or my Memaw or anyone, for that matter and it seemed to have quelled my anger."

Penny nodded in knowing exactly how he felt about that, but didn't say anything. Sheldon's voice queued again, "I- I thought you went back to Nebraska. Why are you still here?"

Penny didn't move from her spot and shrugged, "Why aren't you in Texas? Or with Amy? And where's Leonard?"

Sheldon frowned, "First, you know that I do not drive. Second, Amy was forced to travel to Pennsylvania with her mother to visit their last remaining relatives. Third, Leonard went back to New Jersey with barely even a note in my satchel. I had to walk here from work and nearly died in the process. Now, you did not answer my question. Why are you still here?"

Penny sighed, "I've spent the last 24 hours trying to contact my parents to see if they were even ALIVE. You and Leonard weren't here, my brother's prison was burned to the ground, my sister and her new husband had moved to Boston, I-I thought I was alone." Penny's eyes watered and she could feel her emotions beginning to take over, "And I only have a quarter tank of gas in my car and knew the roads would be slammed full so I didn't even bother."

She wiped her eyes and Sheldon's voice came to her, "That was very logical."

By the time she looked up to see what kind of face he had with that very soft voice, he was moving to the kitchen. Papers and pieces of plastic crunched under his feet. He opened up the refrigerator and took out a bottle of water and closed it, "Leonard's car is still parked in his spot and his keys are still in the bowl. It is possible that we could take his car and travel to Nebraska and Texas. There is no point in staying here. I would very much like to see my family before the world ends."

Sheldon goes to his room and takes the pack for two for the end of the world as well as three small bags for clothes, essentials, and food while Penny changes clothes and packs up spare clothes, blanket, a few stuff animals, and pictures. Sheldon does his eye roll and spiel about how Lotsa Heart Elephant was not an essential 'end of the world' item, but loses his fight as she hugs it tight and sticks her tongue out at him. She grabs her Demarini Vexxum bat and they cautiously made their way down the stairs. They got to the first floor and froze in place at the horrible sight before them. The glass door had had something or someone thrown through it and the floor was covered in blood and bullet casings. The mailbox shelf was tattered and riddled with bullets and there was mail all over the blood covered floor.

The two looked at one another and Penny readied her bat as they both gripped at their bags on their shoulders then headed outside being careful to step slowly on the glass shards. The moment they walk outside; it was a punch to the gut. There were dead bodies sprawled on the concrete and cars on fire. Sheldon shook his head as they walked through a scene out of a bad zombie movie. When they got to the parking deck, they both gasped. It was collapsed. Nothing but remains of cracked concrete and ash. Leonard's car was underneath that rubble.

The two dropped their bags as they both stared at the ruins in awe as Penny let out, "Balls!"

With the bags seemingly weighing them down, they had walked down Euclid Avenue. It was eerily quiet. Every car Penny checked… it was either locked or keyless. Frustration was starting to build up in the both of them and Sheldon's nonstop chattering was making it worse for the blonde, "We should've known there would be more to that meteor strike in Russia. It had to have fallen from somewhere and now we finally get to see from where. This asteroid is supposedly twice the size of the moon. The moon is 27% the diameter and 60% the density of Earth, resulting in 1⁄81 its mass. Its collision will obliterate the Earth completely. This asteroid was discovered long ago, so why has the media just now announcing it? So many questions…" Penny shook her head. She wanted to tell him to shut the hell up, but she could tell he was doing this as a way to not let the fear of the situation swallow him. She pops her neck in an attempt to stop her mind from lashing out at him with sharp words.

They had been surrounded by buildings and creepy alleyways even as the sun blared down on them, but now it was behind the quiet giants and its light was fading. Sheldon checked his watch for the time and saw that it was nearly 6pm, "Penny, where are we headed?"

Penny stopped and looked at the street name. They were at the corner of East Montana Street and Los Robles Avenue. Penny sighed, "I'm just trying to find a car that we can drive. I'm not headed anywhere in particular." She turned around and looked at him and was about to speak but the sound of clicking made them both go silent and look over at the group of young Mexicans aiming very big guns at them. Penny and Sheldon dropped their bags and Penny dropped her bat and both put their hands up. Penny smiled a pretty smile and spoke, "Uhhhmmm… Que Pasa?"

The gang had taken all their bags and the two of them walked in angry silence. Penny managed to sweet talk one of the boys in letting her keep her bat for protection. They had traveled down East Woodbury Road and now were traveling on North Fair Oaks Avenue. Penny was tired, hungry, and now… very much pissed off.

It was now almost 10 pm and they came to a restaurant with lights all on and laughter blaring out of their doors. Penny stopped and looked back at the weary tall man and they moved towards the light and sound. As soon as they walk in, they are greeted like they were the most popular people on the planet. Sheldon shied away from all the touching, but Penny reveled in it. They were shown to a booth in a very lightly lit, generic restaurant setting and given menus.

Sheldon was nervous as he looked all around at the smiling and overly happy people. It was the couple, buck naked and having sex on the table in the corner, that made him stand up fast and slide to the side and look stricken at the blonde, "Penny, there are people fornicating not but 46.17 feet from where we are sitting. I refuse to be served any kind of food here."

Penny's eyes were wide and she turned her head to see the two he was speaking of. Instead of being sickened by it, like Sheldon was hoping she would, she made a thoughtful face and nodded, "Huh, not bad."

"Not BAD? Penny the…"

Before he could even go into his rant, Penny cut him off with her stern voice, "SHELDON. I am hungry. We were robbed and had to walk for almost 6 hours. I'm eating something here and if you have a problem with it; you can wait outside." She thrust the bat towards him with a serious look with her brows raised.

Sheldon's face twitched as he did the calculations of being robbed or murdered outside and the food poisoning he was sure to receive in this fowl establishment. The food won and he reluctantly sat down, sliding over so that Penny's head was blocking the sex from his sight.

The waitress gave them a perfect burger with fries and Sheldon ate in glorious silence. Penny drowned him out staring at the TV just above his head about all the carnage going on around the world and even a live shot of the ever growing asteroid in the sky. It could now be seen in daytime and there were thousands of pictures already being snapped of it. The internet and phone services were nonexistent as satellites began falling to the Earth. There were over 22 accounts of collisions all around the world. 11 of them fallen onto America and Canada.

Penny held a fry up to her mouth but she was so stunned at the number of deaths in the past three days just in California that it just paused in mid air. Sheldon stared at the fry and the blonde's tormented face then looked over his shoulder at the television. He couldn't help but let his eyes go wide at the video feed that was fading in and out. Dead people left and right; fires almost licking the skies; people marching in packs and jumping bystanders… Sheldon shook his head and muttered, "There is nothing more vicious than a gathering of human beings."

Penny's eyes fell to the back of Sheldon's head and nodded before taking in her fry.

* * *

**18 Days…**

They didn't have to pay for their meal and that shocked the both of them. The food was so good and the staff was so diligent that it was like the end of the world wasn't really coming. The waitress explained that the cook just wanted to do what he loved best; cooking for people and everyone that worked here loved him and wanted to help him with his obsession. By the time they got out of the restaurant, it was midnight. Penny shouldered her bat as the two of them stepped out into the night. Sheldon watched her and shook his head. She didn't order a single alcoholic beverage and that pleased him but sort of worried him as well, but it was his utter terror of the surrounding night air of the town that made his worry for her completely disappear. Before he could voice his opinion, though, Penny stopped suddenly and stared at a very roomy, black Yukon. She stepped up on the foot rail and looked inside and saw the keys in the ignition. She smiled wide and tried to open the door, but it was locked. Penny tried every other door as Sheldon looked back and forth in paranoia. Penny grunted in frustration and stood beside the driver's side and slammed her bat through the window.

Sheldon's eyes went drink coaster sized as he looked around in horror for anyone running at them with a shotgun, "PENNY! This is highly illegal and I will not participate in it."

Penny revved the engine and loud, ear shattering music thumped and rattled from the speakers in the back. Sheldon squeaked and looked around, terrified. She turned it down with a laugh as she slapped the metal of the door, "You can hop in or you can walk all the way to Texas… choose wisely."

In the car, Sheldon felt nervous in a stolen car. To take his mind off the thievery, Penny had a discussion about which place they'd go first. Sheldon determined that it would take 39 minutes less to head to Omaha than to Galveston from Pasadena. It was all he threw into the discussion besides the constant reminder that the window was missing. There was no, 'but' in any of it. Sheldon believed it was smarter to go to the fastest destination and Penny smiled at that. They drove until they got to CA-210 and got off the Barstow exit where they merged onto I-15 North. Sheldon informed her that they had to take exit 132 to merge onto 70 East towards Denver and that was nearly 500 miles of almost desert roads. That left the two driving in silence (for about three minutes to Penny's chagrin) and Sheldon began spitting out scientific mumbo-jumbo that set Penny's eye lids on fire with irritation.

"An asteroid has an average orbital speed of 25 kilometers per second. However, asteroids orbiting closer to a sun will move faster than asteroids orbiting between Mars and Jupiter and beyond. The closest orbiting asteroid found, besides the Tallex Cormus which is headed straight for us at 37 kilometers per second, was the 2004 JG6 with an approximate orbital velocity of over 30 kilometers per second. An asteroid approaching earth is not as fast as presumed. Since asteroids orbit in the same direction around the sun as the Earth does, they approach at a slower speed. When an asteroid approaches Earth, however, it gets accelerated by the gravitational pull. Various factors determine its speed as it plummets to the earth, including the shape and size as well as air resistance. A smaller odd-shaped asteroid will fall slower through the air than a perfect spherical asteroid, but since this particular asteroid is very large in mass and size; it's pretty obvious what the outcome will be once it collides."

Penny's eyes watered as she listened to the even voiced blabber of the physicist beside her. He sounded as if none of this mattered. She shook her head as she drove down the deserted interstate, "Sheldon… Shut up about the asteroid ALRIGHT! Talk about something… else."

Sheldon looked out his side window, "Do you have some sort of category we could pick from? The end of the world takes away a lot of the 'Happy' stories. Fairytales have become pointless, at this point."

Penny closed her eyes tight then opened them back. He was a man of knowledge; figures he wouldn't try to delve into fake happiness just for a few more weeks, "I don't want fantasy! I'll take one of your lectures about radio-waves over asteroid talk. I'm already on the verge of breaking down and crying from it all. So… ixnay on the asteroid-eh… Ok?"

"Very well. Then, may I ask as to why Leonard did not contact you about his departure to New Jersey?"

"THAT is off the table, too."

Sheldon's brows furrowed and he looked out the window again, "Picky picky picky."

They pull off on an abandoned rest stop not too far off the highway in Arizona. Penny was happy to see that the lights of the bathroom were still working. She was lucky to have the bat as she had shattered all the vending machines in the small crevice of the building. There were vending machines that had all kinds of things that Penny didn't believe CAME in them. There were, of course, the food and drink one, but there was one that had all sizes of shirts, underwear, socks, shower shoes, and towels, one had shampoo, soap, and even had toothbrushes, hair brushes, and deodorant. Her and Sheldon took as much as they could throw into the Yukon before the two split to each bathroom with a shower and cleaned up. She folded her soiled clothes on top of one of the sinks in the bathroom then flapped out the small sized shirt she just obtained and flipped it over the wall of the first bathroom stall. She gripped her towel and moved to the showers. She stepped in and put it on straight HOT and let out an echoing 'Ahhhh' against the empty, tiled bathroom as the water drained down her tanned skin.

She gave a big smile at the fact that her shampoo was apple scented. She shook her head and mused that Sheldon would appreciate that. After a good, long shower, Penny turned off the shower and reveled in the steamy room she had created. She stepped out of the shower with the ugly shower shoes she obtained from the machines and raised the towel to dry off her hair as she moved back to the sinks where her clothes were. As she rounded the first stall, she noticed a presence and screamed. Sheldon's hands flew to cover his face as Penny jerked the towel to cover her body, "SHELDON! WHAT THE HELL!"

"I-I'm sorry. I got out of my shower quicker and noticed many cars approaching. I wanted to rush you but you approached before I could. I-I saw everything so there is no need in worrying what I did or did not see."

Penny grabbed her clothes and began dressing when she heard him say that cars were coming. By the time Sheldon had ended his last sentence, Penny had all her clothes on, but still with the ugly shower shoes, but she grabbed the bat and flipped her dirty shirt over her shoulder and readied her Demarini as she slowly crept outside. Sheldon curiously watched her prowl and nonchalantly followed.

Penny felt stupid trying to sneak around with her shoes sloshing and leaving evaporating footprints. As she moved around one of the building's edges and rested her back against the brick, Sheldon just stood beside her with one of his etched brows up, "What exactly is it that you're doing? This is not some sort of SWAT team mission. It is just you, with me as a very useless commentator."

Penny looked over at Sheldon with a firm grip on the duct taped handle with her brows furrowed, "These people could kill us, take our car, and leave us stranded on a desert highway. We either need to fight or get the hell out of here."

Sheldon gave her a strange look, "Well, you know which one I'd choose."

She sighed, "That still means we need to GET to the car before them. Let's go!"

She pushed off the wall and readied her bat in a hitter's grip. She gives him a look, "Are you ready?"

Sheldon wringed his hands a few times before swallowing deeply then nodding and the two of them turned the corner of the building and took off running towards the Yukon. Even as they moved towards the vehicle, there was no one in sight. It wasn't until they were 20 feet away when Penny saw a group of motorcycles all parked in a bunch. Sheldon moved from her back to head towards the passenger side as Penny kept her eyes on the driver's side.

Sheldon opened the door and jumped inside then looked over as Penny opened the door and was about to move into the seat when she was snatched in a bear hug by a very burly bearded man. Penny screamed and kicked just as Sheldon's car door was yanked open and he was yanked out by two large men.

There were countless men all over the rest stop. Some sat on benches while a few others were pissing on the bushes. Penny's screams and threats got everyone's attention and they turned towards the noise. The men gave deep throaty chuckles at Penny's expense. One of the men gripped Sheldon's shoulder tightly and made him cringe in pain. The group of large, bearded men split and left a path leading to a bald headed man standing 6'8 with an eye missing and nothing but muscle. The men who held them stopped and Sheldon looked into the man's good eye while Penny's fight seemed to fade as she looked up at the giant, too.

"Clint! Get yur big ass outta my way so I can see the GUESTS." Came a feminine voice behind the wall of man and the huge ogre twitch in fault and moved to the side giving a very deep 'Sorry Boss'.

Penny and Sheldon's head came down to look at an old woman, somewhere in her 80's, with a biker captain cap with a chain around the studded visor. The old woman gave a big smile and moved off the bench she was sitting on, "Hello. Why ain't you two a cute couple? Tell me somethin', what's two youngins like yourselves doing on my territory at such a late hour?" She circled them; letting her fingers brush through Penny's newly showered hair then slapping Sheldon on the ass causing him to yelp. That made the men laugh, "Well? I don't hear ya explainin'?"

"Madam, we are on a very ardent journey to find our families and needed a moment to rest. We had no idea that this was your territory. If we had, I am most certain that my companion and I would have just moved on." Sheldon looked over at Penny, who looked over at him with a smile and nodding in agreement, "If you could just allow us leniency this once, you will most definitely never see us again."

The old woman gave a smile. She got close to Sheldon and reached up and pinched his cheek, "You really are a handsome devil, but you talk too much. If I just handed out leniency all over the place then my boys here would get restless and no one would take me seriously. Here's the deal Slim, you have the choice of getting in your car and driving off all by your lonesome with everything you took; leaving your fine blonde morsel behind for my boys to have a little fun with…" here, the men that surrounded them gave a chuckle as some gave very rude gestures, "… OR… you can fight for her. Which will ya choose?"

Sheldon saw the fear in Penny's eyes but Sheldon knew that if he fought for her, he would most assuredly die, "I believe I shall take the car."

The men all cheered around him, but the old woman looked disappointed. She waved her hand and the men split. Sheldon gave a look to Penny, but her head was bowed and her hair was waved over her face. He was going to say his apologies, but one of the men grabbed him up and tossed him towards the path way.

Penny felt sick to her stomach. She knew why Sheldon chose not to fight; he sucked at it, but now she was at the mercy of more than 20 guys. She was sure she would be raped, beaten, and left on the side of the road. Besides the old woman, there was no other woman in the gang. Penny couldn't stop the tears. Two big men started yelling about how they were first and they started punching each other. The men made a circle around them. A man about 40 years old, standing 6'4, 267 pounds with a long beard and covered in tattoos, broke the other man's arm then knocked him out. He wore loose jeans with a silhouette of a naked woman laying and posing as a belt buckle. His AC/DC shirt was worn and torn at the belly. He wore a blue skull cap that brought out his old, blue eyes that were now shining. He won. He smiled a chipped tooth smile and his buckled boots clinked as he walked towards the blonde.

Penny swallowed as he watched the man lick his lips like a hyena approaching a kill. When he got an arm grip away, a voice bellowed from behind the group of men, "I changed my mind; I wish to fight for my friend."

The men split and Sheldon walked to the circle. The man, who just beat the crap out of a rather large and capable man, turned and stared at Sheldon with murderous intent, "Hey BOY… I won this girl fair and square. Back the fuck off before I rip your head off."

Sheldon looked at the man with his normal scowl then looked to the old woman, "Please, Madam, I wish to fight for my friend. Are there any rules I need to be aware of?"

The older woman smiled, "Why course there are! Number one… survive."

The old man that had won cracked his knuckles and snarled. When Sheldon made eye contact with the man; he charged and Sheldon went wide eyed and ducked. Sheldon shuffled and turned to find the man, but he was too slow and the man's ringed fist struck against his lower jaw. Sheldon was thrown back and he fell backwards, but was caught by the wall of many men and they pushed him back out right into the fist of the man, again, this time, right in his stomach. Sheldon bent over and coughed out from the pain. The old man nodded and circled getting cheers from his gang. Sheldon spit and straightened up and took in shallow breaths.

The old man laughed and got a few feet from him and Sheldon threw up his fists in mock fighting. All the men around him started laughing as the old man shook his head. Sheldon got jabbed and upper-cutted for his trouble and he fell to his knee, again. The old man, tired of fighting a joke of a man, kicked Sheldon's bowed head and making Sheldon flip backwards and land on his back. The gang cheered and the old man looked at Penny with a snarling smile. He made his way towards her, again, and again… Sheldon's voice cut through, "We are not done!"

The old man stopped and turned with a snarl. Penny let out a cry, "Sheldon… NO… Please… Stop!"

Sheldon could taste the blood in his mouth and could feel the throbbing pain coming from his jaw, but he licked his lips and said proudly, "Shut up and let me save you. If you remember; I am a physicist. I have a working knowledge of the entire universe and everything it contains."

The old man snarled and charged towards Sheldon. Sheldon smiled slightly and let his eyes wander all over the man's body. With the speed that his favorite super hero would've been proud of, he ducked slightly and rushed past the man's body; unhooking the belt around his belly. The old man turned and charged Sheldon again. Sheldon ducked it again and through the belt buckle off. Another charge and Sheldon got the belt hanging open and Sheldon moved away. The old man was pissed now and he came charging like a bull. Sheldon used very dainty moves that had him flowing around the brute and he yanked the old man's belt right off. When the old man came to a stop, he turned around and his pants fell straight down. As the man bent down and grabbed his pants to pull them up, Sheldon swung the very heavy belt with the buckle attached as hard as he could and as precise as his hands would let him to strike him right on his temple.

The man went limp and fell to the ground; knocked out. The stunned gang went silent, but a very enthusiastic applause came from behind him. He turned and saw the smiling face of the old woman, "Well, you won there, Slim. Take yo prize and leave. If I see you in my territory again… I'll let m'boys rape you AND your girl." Though her words were a threat, she had a very warm smile on her face. It confused Sheldon, but he gave a nod, threw the belt down, and extended his arm to motion for Penny to come to him.

The men let Penny go and she rubbed her sore arm that now had finger sized bruises on her bare skin. The old woman sniffed and winked at the blonde as the circle of men dispersed and the two could see their Yukon. The two, looking over their shoulders many time, finally made it to the front of the Yukon. Before the two split to their respective sides, Penny grabbed Sheldon's hand and stopped him. The two looked at one another, Sheldon unable to read Penny's expression. Penny launched herself into him and wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a passionate but brief kiss. The action left him staring madly as Penny unattached herself and smiled, "Thank you."

She moved to the driver's side and Sheldon just touched his lips with an index finger. He shook his head loose of the feeling then moved to the passenger side. The Yukon squealed its tires as Penny backed up and raced off back to the highway.

Sheldon's jaw, nose, and eyes began to hurt and he didn't spare a moment telling Penny. They got 14 miles into Utah and it was still night. 3 am to be precise. They pulled off to the side of the road and decided to get a few hours of sleep.

Penny flicked out two towels, putting them across the second row of fused backseats. She looked at Sheldon, "You can sleep there and I'll take this one." She looked in the back and found one of the things she took out of the vending machines; a bottle of aspirin. She threw it at Sheldon's chest and patted his chest as she passed by him. She tiredly slumped into the smaller fused seats and yawned loudly.

Sheldon shook his head and opened the bottle and took four small white pills. He took one of the waters from the back and swallowed. He knew there wouldn't be any kind of instant relief, but he slid into the back seat and tried his best to lay straight. As he closed his eyes, the image of the kiss replayed in his head. It was such a quick moment, but he let it play slowly in his mind. As he smiled, he drifted into sleep.

It was the patterned flashes of light and the feel of lightness that woke Sheldon up. When his eyes opened, he could see the white web of light that surrounded the sun from the edge of the top of the car. He sat up and wiped his eyes clean. When his eyes were truly open, he took in the gorgeous sight of mountains all around them. He looked over the seat in front of him, "Penny, where are we?"

Penny smiled, "Morning sleepy head! We are now on East I-70 in Utah. I got a good 7 hours driving and even stopped for gas at a super abandoned station. Luckily I knew how to turn on the pumps on the inside. I never knew how much I loved the end of the world until I started speeding on the highway with no fear of being pulled over." She immediately regretted saying that she was speeding in the presence of Sheldon, because she looked in the rearview and saw him hyperventilating.

"PENNY! Vehicular homicide is still very much a threat. Please, I would like to live for the next few weeks, if you don't mind!"

She shook her head and gave a grim smile, "You were asleep; you wouldn't have felt a thing."

"Still…" there was a small pause and he spoke again, "Penny, I know you are on a roll trying to kill us a little earlier than expected, but I-I need to; expel my fluids."

Penny nodded, "Gross, but ok."

She pulled over besides a forest seemingly spilling down a hill. Sheldon moved to argue, "Penny, I am not a wild animal. I cannot just urinate on a tree like some canine."

Penny turned and looked over the seat, "Either you pee on a tree or HOLD IT." Her brow arched and waited for Sheldon to make his choice. After he didn't move, she shrugged, "Alright then, hold it."

Sheldon groaned and rolled his eyes, "Alright, alright, FINE. But know this, you are to blame for making any wild life attack that could possibly ensue."

Penny shook her head as he hopped out of the side and stood in front of a large tree. His jaw was hurting and his left eye was swollen. His sighed and shook his head as he murmured, "This woman will be the death of me way before the asteroid."

He unzipped his pants and heard Penny's wolfwhistles and he rolled his eyes. He swallowed and concentrated on rushing water in his head. He closed his eyes and he finally began to go. He had a good stream going when the sound of a gun clicking beside his head made it stop dead. Sheldon looked over and there was a double barrel shotgun only inches from his nose.

"Put your hands up."

Sheldon did and the gun backed up and Sheldon could make out a young man in a forest ranger uniform. The ranger looked down then snapped his eyes away, "You can put your penis up, too."

Sheldon nodded and did so and gave a sideways look at the Yukon and saw that Penny was not in the driver's side. He looked back at the ranger and saw a wild look in his eyes, "You are trespassing in a State Park. Urinating openly is a crime."

Sheldon swallowed, "Yes, but not punishable by death. I am sorry Ranger… Donovan." He read the ranger's name plate, "I would take it back, but it seems to have been absorbed into the soil."

Ranger Donavan aimed the gun at Sheldon's chest, "How do I not know you aren't some serial killer that just escaped from an asylum. I should kill you before you kill me." His finger hugged the trigger and Sheldon's eyes went wide and his mind went blank. Before anything happened further, the sound of metal against bone crunched in the air and the Ranger's hat fell off and Donavan fell to the ground. Penny raised the bat over her head to strike once more, but she lowered it seeing he was unconscious. Penny smiled and grabbed the shotgun then threw it down the hill of trees before stepping back and standing in front of Sheldon, "Now we're even! Let's get out of here before Ranger Crazyass wakes up." Sheldon agreed and sidestepped while looking down at the man before jumping into the passenger side.

Forests, mountains, and rivers were all the scenery that Sheldon saw during the drive through Utah. As the sun started going down, Sheldon had to admit at how beautiful it was seeing the distant scenery doused in pink and purple color of the sunset. Just when he was staring lovingly at it, a wall of trees and rock hid it. He looked over at Penny and watched her sip at one of the bottles of Dr. Pepper and he sighed, "So, tell me, what is it that you would want to do before you die?"

Penny wiped her mouth and looked at him briefly, "What do you mean? Like what country I'd like to visit or what actor I'd like to sleep with?"

Sheldon shook his head, "No, as in something that could actually happen. Lord Penny, I should have known coitus with someone would be on your list of things."

Penny shook her head and put the Dr. Pepper bottle in the cup holder in front of the useless radio. She swallowed and let a very tense look on her face, "I wanted to be with my family or with someone who really cared about me. Leonard… he didn't even bother telling me he was going back to New Jersey…"

Sheldon sighed, "In all fairness, it was a spur of the moment action for him. Even I wouldn't have known hadn't he written me a note."

Penny gripped the steering wheel, "That's just it, though! He wrote YOU a note… I didn't get SHIT."

Sheldon looked over at her, "Penny, if you would've known earlier about the asteroid, are you telling me you wouldn't have just taken off for Nebraska without telling him? What's done is done and we are going to find your family then, I'll go to find mine."

Penny sighed then tilted her head, "Sheldon, I'm gonna take you home. This was totally your idea and I wouldn't abandon you in Nebraska. You have my word."

Sheldon looked out the passenger side window as the darkness seemed to engulf the world, "A verbal consent, primitive, but acceptable. I'll hold you to it."

Penny smiled and they drove on and they finally saw the sign for Nebraska. It got 11pm and Penny decided to pull over. They took a few bags of potato chips and bottles of drink. Sunkist for Penny and Green Tea for Sheldon. Penny sat on the hood of the Yukon and leaned against the windshield and stared at the gorgeously clear sky. She put a Cool Ranch Doritos in her mouth and crunched it as her eyes landed on the ever growing asteroid approaching the Earth. Sheldon sat in the passenger seat with the window down and door open. He had a bag of plain Sunchips and was chewing on the side of his mouth that didn't hurt. The sodas were warm, but still quenching his thirst. He was snapped out of his small day dream with Penny calling his name softly. He stepped out of the door and looked at her over the edge of the Yukon, "So, what do YOU want to do before you die?"

Sheldon wanted a lot of things before he was dead, but he knew none of them would be reasonable. He just shook his head and lamely said, "Just to see my mother and Memaw once more."

Penny nodded, "See? Isn't that a whole lot more easier than wanting the Nobel Peace Prize?"

Sheldon's nostrils flared, "More Easier? Penny, have you learned nothing about grammar since meeting me."

Penny smiled, "I learned a LOT of things, but grammar wasn't one of them."

Sheldon rolled his eyes then looked up at the asteroid almost the size of the moon in the sky and swallowed deeply.

* * *

**17 Days…**

Penny pulled slowly up her rock covered drive way and stared at the two floored house. Sheldon's eyes reflected the small porch with the red aluminum roof. It was the perfect image of a farmer's home. To the left of the Yukon was a large, red painted, slightly chipped barn with a herd of 6 horses leaning over the fence and neighing at the newcomers. Penny threw open the door and ran to the small stairs and attempted to open the door, but was stopped by the fact that it was locked, "MOM, DAD! IT'S PENNY!"

Sheldon got out of the car and stood beside the open door and watched his neighbor move to any window she could find and looking inside. He looked over at the horses… they were following Penny as she rounded the home. He walked over to the trough and found it nearly empty of water. He swallowed. If her parents were here… they would've watered the animals. He looked around him and saw a hose and well-pump not too far. He threw the hose in the trough and raised the handle up. The hose spat and fought for a few moments then spewed water. He heard Penny's footsteps crunch against the rock as she ran back to the front and banged on the door a few more times, hard then stopped and slid down to the porch covering her face. One of the Chestnut Bays bumped Sheldon's back from behind and caused him to lurch forward. An idiot would believe it was the horse saying to go comfort her, but Sheldon knew better… he moved to the porch anyway.

He moved up the two steps and stood before her and looked down. He sighed and bent down to get on her level, "Penny, is there anywhere they would've gone to be safe?"

Penny shook her head like a child and he sighed, "Look; it's only 14 hours to get to Galveston. We'll sleep here and maybe get lucky that they'll come home."

Sheldon stood up and dusted off his khakis, "I'm looking forward to putting some ice on my jaw and eye. Penny, where do you keep the feed for your horses?" Penny, her eyes red and wet, looked up then over at the six equines still dancing at the fence.

Penny threw open the old red barn doors with Sheldon beside her. He cringed and moved closer to her as the six horses galloped in and got into their respective stalls. They each moved to their feed buckets in anticipation of food. Penny went and closed the six stall doors and moved to another door. She yanked it open to reveal plastic trashcans with tight, snapping lids on them. A strong, cold breeze came through the barn and made Sheldon shiver. He stepped inside the big room as Penny grabbed the six multicolored buckets that were stacked inside one another. She grabbed the top one, a purple bucket, and opened the first trashcan. There was a scoop with dry pellets. Penny took a big whiff, "Oh man how I've missed that smell." She got one big scoop and a half one into the purple bucket. "This is Thrifty's. Oh… um… the second horse on the left with the star and long white stripe down his nose." She handed it to Sheldon and he complied.

Sheldon walked down to where she specified. The horses all let out snorts and grunts as if calling him towards them. Sheldon had to admit, he never liked horses, but he did miss helping his grandfather with his. Sheldon learned so much about the way horses moved, thought, behaved, and learned. It was very educational for a young mind. He even helped birth a baby colt that his grandfather named Moonpie, after him. When his grandfather died, Memaw couldn't keep up with the horses so she sold each and every one, even Moonpie. Memaw had no problem with those DEMON chickens. Sheldon was almost inconsolable; not just because of his grandfather dying, but because everything his grandfather loved were gone. Everything his grandfather put so much time and heart into were sold like they meant nothing. That, itself, was the biggest lesson he ever learned. Nothing you ever do will matter to others; so it best not to waste your time on caring.

By the time Sheldon returned, the trashcan lids were all off and there were the small buckets on the floor and Penny was putting the final scoop into the pink bucket. Penny smiled and threw the scoop back into the last trashcan, then went around and put the lids on the six. Penny grabbed the five buckets, three in one hand and two on the other. Sheldon moved to the side as Penny stepped out and got horse calls all over the place. She smiled and handed the two in her left hand to Sheldon, "The blue bucket is for the white horse at the end and the orange is for the one in front of her." Sheldon nodded and moved to the end of the barn. He opened up the small gate and the white horse stuck her nose out with her ears straight up and put her lips all over Sheldon's face.

"OH! SHELDON! Cotton gives… kisses…" She busted out laughing as Sheldon looked over with his small bangs sticking up in the air and he scowled at her while pouring the food into the horse's bucket without looking. She pours her last bucket as Sheldon cautiously put the next bucket in and that made Penny laugh harder. She jumped into the feed room still laughing and Sheldon moved and put the orange bucket into the blue one and went to the feed room. Penny smiled at him while taking the buckets from his hands, "I do believe you did that on purpose."

Penny stacked and moved out, Sheldon following, "I swear I didn't. I just remembered when I fed Loco and he tried to bite me."

He looked stricken, "Why do you have a horse that will bite you?"

She shook her head, "He's a great horse, just has a weird neurotic thing in his stall when feed is involved."

Penny made sure there was water in their stalls and the two of them headed back to the house. Sheldon picked the lock and used his old 'Master of the Universe' line and Sheldon walked in. It smelled warm and inviting like his Memaw's home. Penny moved past him and up the stairs that were to his right. He walked down a small hallway that had pictures hung up on either side. Sheldon saw many pictures of people he didn't recognize, but seemed so familiar at the same time. He stopped at one of a very young Penny, about 11 or 12, standing on the back of a white and brown leopard appaloosa with the reins firmly in her hand, barefooted and barebacked. She had tight jean shorts, a tanned cowboy hat and a button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up. The smile was what gave her away, it was Penny alright. Though her teeth were crooked, her blonde hair was shoulder length, and she wasn't her overly tanned self, but it was definitely Penny.

Sheldon smiled and moved to the living room. It was roomy and had a leather Lazy-Boy right in front of the 38" TV with a long couch behind it with a coffee table in front of it then a small, box chair on the other side. He moved to the kitchen, just a few ways down from the hallway, and heard the fridge running. He mentally thanked his mother's God. He grabbed a decently clean towel off the handle of the stove and went to the freezer and filled the cloth with ice. He put it on his eye and almost reeled at the pain and relief of getting a chance to get the swelling down.

Sheldon was staring at the mirror with the streak that he wiped off from the steam and just poking the bruise on his jaw. Why did he come back? People wanted to believe that he did it for his friend, but truthfully… he didn't want to drive. It was petty and he was glad Penny never asked him. His fingers drifted to his lips. He'd been kissed by lots of women in his time, but what was it about Penny's that made his chest tighten up. Penny was a conundrum to him. Every single action Penny performed was something that he couldn't understand, and not understanding things was Sheldon's pet peeve. He wanted to just jump inside her head for two minutes. He shook his head and brushed his teeth and spat.

Penny gave him some of her father's CLEAN (she made sure) pajamas that oddly looked like something straight out of Sheldon's closet. Plaid pants and button up top with a white shirt underneath. He walked barefooted down the hardwood hallway from the first floor bedroom that was her parent's room. He moved around the wall to the kitchen and stopped at the sight before him. Penny, in only a sports bra with very short and old school basketball shorts, was reaching up to the very top shelf and barely reaching it. He could not stop his eyes from wandering all over the blonde's very shapely ass and muscular exposed back. She stopped and turned a smiled, "Thank God! Can you hand me that box of elbow noodles. I keep forgetting that my parents are giants."

Sheldon, trying so hard to hide the blush on his cheeks, nodded and moved to the shelf quickly and retrieved it with his long arms while trying to make conversation, "It is now 7 pm on a Wednesday. I wonder where your parents could be."

Penny moved to the oven only a few feet away and looked down at the boiling pot, "They never went anywhere. It's why I always snuck out and had sex with the neighbor kid."

Sheldon snapped his eyes on her then rolled them. She poured the noodles into the pot then stirred them so as not to get stuck on the bottom, "If my parents don't come home tonight; we'll start heading towards  
Texas. I promise."

Sheldon smiled and looked at the pot with the bubbling sauce, "Another verbal agreement. It's as if you believe I don't believe you."

Penny stirred the sauce, "I know you; if it isn't on paper, it isn't worth your time."

She reached over and put the sauce eye on Simmer then stirred the noodles once more. She looked at him and paused. He was staring at the bubbling water with such a sad look on his face, "Sheldon… hey, you'll see your family! We got nearly 16 days left."

He switched his eyes to her, "That's not it. I-I wasted a lot of my life on things and I never once regretted them. I thought that order would make life easier. Wow… how intriguing the universe can be when there is no future given. Everything I've done; everything I have learned and remembered; the people I've met and the ones I haven't… it all makes no difference. There was NO REASON for my existence." His eyes water but he is far too proud to let them fall, but Penny's hand touches his cheek and rubs his swollen eye.

"You're still here… you're still alive. You matter. You matter to me. I mean, without you I would've been killed. You saved my life! I know you remember that; even though the only reason you did was because you needed me to drive, but that's still something. I mean, you used physics to beat the ass of a very big biker guy for me. That was the coolest thing ever. So stop being all emotional. It's freaking me out!" She smiled and dropped her hand and stirred the noodles again then tested one and smiled at how soft it was. Sheldon stepped backwards put kept his eyes on her. He smiled softly as she looked over at him, "Dinner will be served in a few moments; get the plates would ya?" He nodded and got the table ready.

The food was actually delicious. He was going to comment how Leonard was wrong about her cooking, but actually thought it best NOT to. He was proud of himself. He helped Penny with the dishes as she talked about her memories of her home and Sheldon threw some tidbits about his. It was… it was pleasant.

When they finally got rested and relaxed on the couch, a sudden noise of the doors opening caused the two to jump up a little. Wyatt and, who looked like Penny's mother, came into the living room slowly and Penny's face jarred in emotion just as the two others did the same. Penny launched herself into her father's arms and he hugged her tightly. Sheldon stood with his arms behind his back. As Penny hugged her mother, Wyatt looked at Sheldon, then back to Penny, "Where's Leonard? And who is this?"

Sheldon swallowed, "Leonard is somewhere in New Jersey. I am Doctor Sheldon Lee Cooper; roommate of Leonard and neighbor of your daughter."

Penny's mother's brow went up in amusement, "Sheldon was it? Oh, we've heard all about you."

Penny eyeballed her mother, "Moooom… No."

Wyatt moved towards Sheldon with his arm extended. He took in the wounds on Sheldon's face and seemed to be happy, "Nice to meet you, Sheldon. Thank you for taking care of my girl."

Sheldon would normally shy away from just gestures, but with no time to waste on worrying about the end, he reached out and took it into his grip, "Yes. It was my pleasure."

He could hear Penny's mother's whisper, "So sleeping with the roommate, now. Penny…"

Sheldon looked at Wyatt's stern face, "Oh… No… NO. Penny and I are just travelling companions seeking our families before the end."

Penny nodded, "That's it in a nutshell."

Sheldon blanked out the rest of the night as it was just story after story of people Sheldon didn't know. He missed the part where her family invited them to an end of the world party at her mother's friend's house. Family, friends, booze, and music. He did hear the part where Penny explained that she had to get Sheldon to Texas but her mother completely talked over it.

* * *

**16 Days…**

Sheldon spent the day outside, sitting on the fence, and watching the horses doing nothing. He envied them. They had no idea that the world was ending, so they did what nature told them to do; graze. A cold breeze hit Sheldon on the chin and he shivered again. Penny was spending the day with her family and Sheldon didn't want to be interfering with it. He didn't know them and didn't want to say something stupid to cause Penny to have to explain.

"There you are!"

Sheldon looked over his shoulder and saw Penny walking towards him, her hair French braided on either side of her shoulder with almost the same type of outfit that she had on in the picture he saw in the hallway.

"Yes. I found that giving you time with your family was most appropriate."

She smiled, "Look, we've been invited to a party. I told my mom you'd come as long as I don't drink."

Sheldon grimaced, "Penny…"

She cut them off, "I know, I know… you don't dance blah blah blah. Just hang out with me for a few hours then we can take off for Texas. It's just a cook out with some people you'll never see again. Please Sheldon, don't make me do this alone! Please, please, please, please, pleeeassse."

Sheldon groaned but sighed, "Ok, OK. I'll go, but you can't drink any alcohol. Remember verbal agreement."

She smiled and winked, "Verbally obligated."

They drove up to a huge yard with almost over 200 cars surrounded it. There was a band thumping and people all over the place with a huge, three story house on a hill in the back of the party. Sheldon got out of the truck and looked around at all the people of all colors and sizes. Children running around and chasing one another while men stood around in mass circles with beer in one hand while telling stories. Women, standing in the shade, gossiping and going on about the last TV show they saw. Teenagers dancing or playing Frisbee or throwing the football around. There were no unhappy faces. No 'OMG We're All Gonna Die' vibe going. Sheldon let out a sigh and moved beside Penny, who was wearing a very beautiful flowing yellow dress with black Lacoste Ziane Slip flats, as she walked forward. He had his flash T-Shirt on with a black and white striped undershirt with his khaki pants and his brown Drift Cat 4 Puma shoes.

Sheldon just looked around as Penny talked with a man from her childhood (that she apparently slept with since he heard him whispering that to the men around him as they moved on). It was a long day and Sheldon didn't speak to anyone. He eventually got tired of weighing down Penny and moved to a tree not too far from where a bonfire was being built.

He held a cup of very well made Lemonade and leaned against the thick trunk. He looked over at Penny with a little girl in her lap and her and the kid coloring on a book. His head tilted at the fluttering that started in his chest then took a big sip from his cup. The band began to play again and most of the people moved on towards it leaving Sheldon the only one around the fire. He swallows and stares at the fire; desperately not wanting to look over at Penny again least his heart starts to flutter again.

"Your girl is really good with children."

Sheldon's head snapped to look over at where the statement came from. A woman with faded green hair and a tattoo of a pink puzzle piece on her neck and her ear riddled with metal was staring at the fire right beside him. She smiled and looked at him and he took in the green, heterochromia eyes. She was fairly beautiful and seemed to have his style of dressing. He cleared his throat and turned his head back to the fire, "Yes she is. It's too bad she didn't want any of her own with her boyfriend."

The woman spoke, surprised, "Wait, you and her aren't together. Dude… you wouldn't leave her side for 5 and half hours."

Sheldon took a sip from his cup and sighed, "We are not together. She is merely my neighbor and a very good friend and, as it was, the only person that I know at this gathering. That is all."

The heterochromia eyes shone as she smiled. Sheldon swallowed and cut his eyes in her direction and saw the curious look and turned his head towards her. She bowed her head as he did and ran her fingers through her short, pixie cut green hair and chuckled lightly, "Oh dear. The world is going to come to an end and men are still in denial of their feelings. That's a sad relief; knowing that not everyone changes with the knowledge they're gonna die. You are traveling with a breathtakingly beautiful woman who hasn't made a move with any of these handsome horndogs and you're telling me that you two are JUST NEIGHBORS? Pfft… I find that hard to believe."

Sheldon snorted, "You can find it any way you wish. Penny and I are just friends. I, myself, find it hard to believe that Penny hasn't tried to bed with any of these Neanderthals myself, but Penny is her own woman. Her actions and decisions are her own. I am not a deciding factor regarding such things. Now, madam, if you'll excuse me…"

The woman smiled, "Tabbie… Not madam. I don't run a brothel and I am FAR from a lady. And what do they call you?"

Sheldon squinted and sighed, "Doctor. Doctor Sheldon Cooper."

Tabbie grinned, "Well, Doc, I just want to say this and you can take it however you want. If you aren't too careful; YOU'LL be that Neanderthal that will engage in coitus with her."

Sheldon looked at the woman with wide eyes and she raised her brow and smiled then looked forward, "Your girl keeps looking over here with a worried look on her face and I don't think it's because she's worried I'm going to murder you. Listen Doc, love is the most unpredictable predicament that any human will ever be subjugated to. While you are 'traveling' together; you're gonna find that, in the end, all you two really have are each other and it's all you're ever gonna need."

Sheldon watched as Penny kissed the kid on the side of the head and moved towards him. He swallowed and looked over at where the woman was, but she was gone. Penny got to him and smiled, "Who was that? She was pretty."

Sheldon looked at her, "Her name was Tabbie and she was aesthetically pleasing." He took a sip from his cup and tried to hide the expression on his face.

Penny sighed, "I'm glad you're trying to find a woman for the end of the world. You need to finally get rid of your virginity."

He coughed into his cup a wiped his mouth with his free hand, "Penny! I wasn't going to sleep with her. She was what I would call strange, at best. How about you? Have you found a man to relieve your stress?"

She shook her head, "Seriously? You're changing the subject. It's the end of the world, Shelly! Tell me you're not a LITTLE curious at how it would feel? I'm not dropping this…" She stood beside him and turned him to look at the crowd of people and continued, "You pick anyone, and I mean ANYONE, and I'll go get her and talk you up a big game. I'll be the best wingman you'll ever SEE. I am going to find you the perfect 'end of the world' person and you're going to 'engage in coitus'. That is my new mission."

Sheldon shook his head in bafflement, "How absurd. Are my sexual relations that much on your mind that you would dedicate your last days into enforcing your fantasies upon me? Very well, I do not see anyone I wish to 'mingle with' here."

Penny nodded and let out a big sigh, "You didn't even LOOK. Alright, fine. If you ever see anyone you want as we travel together; you just lean in, point, and whisper 'Her' and I'll go rope her in."

Sheldon shook his head, "I doubt that will ever be the case, but; noted."

Penny pushed her shoulder against his and smiled, "Cool… What do you say we head to Texas?" She jingled the keys in front of him and smiled, "Mom and Dad said they're gonna stay since my mother indulged in most of the alcohol offered to her and Dad wants to stay with her. I'm going to say my goodbyes and we'll be on our way." She leaned up and kissed his cheek then took off towards the house.

* * *

**15 Days…**

Penny told Sheldon that she had to do something at her home before they got on the road. Sheldon, not on to question a woman on a mission, agreed. The car's headlights shown on the metal gate where the horses were being kept and Sheldon tilted his head as he watched Penny run to it. She yanked open the gate wide and he could hear her giving a loud whistle with her fingers in her mouth. A few moments later, the six horses exploded from the gate and Sheldon's eyes went wide and he slipped out the open window and watched the horses bolt down the rock driveway. He snapped his look over at Penny, whose hands were on her hips and she was smiling with watery eyes. Sheldon couldn't stop the smile on his face at just how beautiful she looked, then. Penny took in a small sniff through her nose then looked at Sheldon, "Ok, I'm good!"

They rested at another rest stop not too far from the Nebraska and Kansas border. The Midwestern scenery was dull and flat and just as deserted as the road from Pasadena. The rest stop was less exciting as the last one they were at. Sheldon slept in the far back, but just ended up getting restless. He silently moved out of the door and sat on one of the benches beside a stone gazebo where the map of Kansas and Nebraska were together. It had a dull, orange light illuminating within it, but it didn't deter the view of the beautiful open sky.

While he mapped out all the constellations in his head, he always found the large ball in the sky so frustratingly out of place. His mind wandered to that girl he met at the cookout. She was very beautiful, but her words were what kept plaguing him. Could he and Penny… could they be more than friends? He never thought about it. Granted… he's thought about doing many things with Penny at night in his bed, but not one of them was being… a couple. He let out a sigh and a cloud of air seeped from his lips. He grew tired and moved back to the car.

They spent all day on the road. They went through almost three toll booths through Kansas and Oklahoma, but from there they simply began telling stories from their perspectives about the times they spent together. Most were stories that made the both of them laugh. They told stories of Leonard, Raj, and Howard… Bernadette, Amy, and Zach… Barry, Leslie, and Priya… Everyone… Sheldon dulled down the science and Penny dulled down the cussing. They shared so many laughs and memories that by the time they looked up, they were in Texas.

Sheldon could feel the excitement start to build in his chest as they traveled down I-45. Sheldon saw the sign for Houston and he told Penny to go there first. Memaw lived in Sharpstown a ways from Houston and she may be easier to find than a church going woman with the end of the world coming. Penny laughed and obliged. As they drove on, Penny mused herself at the wavy side barriers of the highway and Sheldon shook his head and mused how easily amused she could be.

Penny smiled at the almost Midwestern scenery. The only difference between here and Nebraska was the fact that there were people still happily walking the block with their dogs and people still till their land. Sheldon motioned for Penny to pull into a long LONG dirt road. Nearly two miles long, to be exact… Penny could hear the cicadas sawing in the trees as they finally made it to a very quaint little house. Penny could see the remains of a fence and barn where they may have kept horses.

Penny couldn't stop smiling as she saw the excited, little boy grin on Sheldon's face as he hopped out of the Yukon before she could even put it in park. Sheldon jogged up the three stairs of the porch and knocked his knocks:

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK, Memaw!  
KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK, Memaw!  
KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK, Memaw!

As Penny closed the Yukon door and made her way up the porch, she looked down the hill that the house was rested on top of and stared at all the farmland and the woods surrounding it, but it was the distant look of Houston many miles away. The big light blue door opened up behind the screen door and a tall, regal, older woman immediately threw it open with a look of pure happiness as she let out a southern drawl, "Hello Moonpie!"

Sheldon gave a crooked smile, "Hello Memaw. Nice weather we're having."

The old woman laughed and the two embraced.

Penny had to smile at the human Sheldon transformed into around his Memaw. He was animated and smiling so wide just talking to her about how her tomato plants were coming in. She left the two to reminisce as she went from room to room. Penny looked at all the pictures throughout the house. Some were old and looked to be fading even though they were in black and white. There were pictures of a very slender but beautiful woman that had to be a younger version of Clara Maryanne Jenkins, aka Memaw.

As she made it to a cabinet full of books on the bottom two shelves, she looked up to see pictures of this era. Her eyes immediately fell to one of a slender little boy with dark hair and the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. He was feeding an old mule a long carrot with a slightly older version of Memaw with her hand over his, showing him how to flatten out his hand to properly feed without losing fingers. Penny smiled warmly. Where did that Sheldon go? The Sheldon not afraid to get a little dirty. As Penny sighed, there was a very beautiful melody coming from the living room.

Penny walked slowly down the hall and smiled at a crisp rendition of Nat King Cole singing _When I Grow Too Old to Dream_. When Penny got to the door frame she stopped and watched as Memaw and Sheldon slowly waltzed to the song. For a woman supposedly in her 80's, Penny had to marvel at how limber she was. Yet, it was Sheldon that caught her eye. Penny smiled and leaned against the frame. She loved Nat King Cole's voice and the melody was so luscious. She closed her eyes and let it flow over her. Before she could stop it, a tear slid down her face. She kept remembering that the world would be ending and it was a feeling that made her insides drop to the floor. She opened her eyes as the song ended and she quickly wiped the tears away then clapped for the two dancers.

The old woman does a mock curtsy and pats her grandson's arm, "Well now, why don't you and Penny have a dance, Moonpie?"

Penny waved her hands, "Oh no Mrs. Jenkins, I don't know anything about that kind of dancing. I leave that up to the professionals and celebrities on Dancing with the Stars."

Memaw smiled brightly, "My dear Penny, I taught this stubborn boy how to waltz; I know you'll be a breeze. Come on now, come on over and take your position."

The older woman ignored the shocked looks from both Sheldon and Penny and went to her record player and Nat King Cole's song _There Will Never Be Another You_ as Penny stepped and stood in front of Sheldon. Memaw clapped her hands, "Go on Moonpie; take your position."

Penny smiled at the old woman then looks up at the very blue eyes of Sheldon and the smile slowly drifted off her face. The way he was looking down at her made her chest flutter. They both swallowed as Sheldon's hands twitched then slowly lifted in the air and paused. His right hand smoothly snaked around Penny's hips and rested on the lower part of her back while his left caressed the inside of her hand then rose both the hands up shoulder height. Penny looked over at their hands touching palm to palm then watched his fingers clamp gently between her index and thumb. She let out a barely audible gasp as he pulled her body close to his and her eyes snapped to his.

She didn't even hear a word that the old woman was saying to her until she heard her name being spoken sharply. Penny caught her breath and looked over at the older woman, "Huh?"

The older woman gave a crooked smile and paused a little bit while stopping the music, "In dancing, the man leads and the woman follows. It might be hard for you to understand since my Moonpie tells me you are an independent and a strong willed woman."

Penny snorted a laugh, "Is that ALL he's said about me?" She looked at him with a raised brow and he looked away while pursing his lips.

Memaw gave a chuckle then started the song over again, "Go on then. Annnnnd… 1-2-3, 1-2-3…" Sheldon pulled Penny close again and the two began to dance and the older woman slowly drifted from the room with a very happy smile.

They started off slow but their eyes never let the other's gaze go. The lyrics of the song seemed to sting at the hearts of the two and soon the song ended and they were both lightly panting. They stood only inches apart with their eyes slightly watered. Sheldon cleared his throat and dropped his hands and his eyes and Penny smiled and tried to break the awkwardness, "So, turns out that you are such a fantastic dancer that you can teach someone like me to do it. Who knew?"

Sheldon's eyes came back up to meet her eyes as she gave a fake laugh, "I never said I couldn't dance, and you shouldn't speak of yourself in such a way."

Penny's laugh died down and he looked at the seriousness of Sheldon's face and narrowed her eyes, "What's going on with you? Since when did the boy made of wood finally become a REAL boy? You never hesitated to remind me how useless I am, but once we get stuck together, it's all peaches and cream!"

Sheldon prickled up and narrowed his eyes, "I have never said that you didn't possess any kind of potential. If you just applied yourself to something with all your optimistic energy, you'd have been ten times as successful as you were. That's all I've ever spoken to you… the truth. If I was anything in this world, it was truthful."

Penny's eyes fell down, "Brutally, sometimes."

Sheldon pursed his lips and sighed through his nose. When Penny looked back up, Sheldon's eye twitched at her watery eyes. She swallowed deeply and took one step forward. Sheldon was frozen as he just stared into Penny's olive green eyes. One more step allowed the blonde to wrap her arms around his neck and pulled him against her. Her velvety lips gently pressed against his. It wasn't but two heartbeats when Sheldon found his arms snake around her back and pulled her in closer and fish-kissed her lips. The kisses they shared seemed to drive each of them wilder as Penny's arm constricted tighter around his neck and his hand gripping the yellow fabric of her dress at her back. Before anything could get more heated, the power flashed in and out a few times before going out completely; Nat King Cole's voice almost melting into the darkness.

Sheldon slowly pulled away, reluctantly, and whispered softly between them, "I need to go check on Memaw."

Penny swallowed and nodded as she let him go, letting her fingers slide down his chest as she licked her lips. He went to the cabinet, near the record player, and brought out two flashlights. Sheldon gave one to Penny and turned it on for her. The spot light shot up under their chins and illuminated their lust. She smiled at him and gave him a wink and he let out a huff and turned on the other flashlight then exited.

Memaw showed them to their rooms, separately, as the two beams from their flashlights spotlighted from wall to wall as they walked. Penny was shown to hers first then smiled and waited until the other two moved down the hall before running and jumping on the tall, soft bed. Penny let out a long and luscious, 'Ahhhhh' as she stretched out on the firm but soft bed. She let one of her arms cross over her eyes as she let the kiss play over and over. She purses her lips while her tongue takes the taste of him still on them. She didn't want to admit it but she really wanted Sheldon. She wanted him in the worst way, but she also knew that, even though Sheldon was letting himself go a little because the end was near, he was STILL Sheldon. She knew he wouldn't want her the way she wanted him and that… that thought caused the tears to slide from under her arm that covered her face.

Sheldon kissed his grandmother's cheek as she closed her door to her own bedroom. As Sheldon walked back to his room, his chest tightened ever so slightly. He may have just changed the paradigm of his and Penny's relationship. Relationship? Sheldon gripped at his chest at that thought. What if Penny… what if she wanted more? Could he… could he actually undertake the intentional act of coitus with his neighbor? He got to the door of his room and stopped. The image of Penny's naked body at the rest stop plagued his thoughts along with the kiss replaying. He couldn't stop his heart rate from rising… or other things, for that matter. His erection twitched just to spite him and he rushed into his room and shut the doors tight.

* * *

**14 Days…**

Sheldon couldn't sleep what with his mind on full blast of the last few days with Penny. It wasn't the surroundings that kept him awake. The bed was perfect, the temperature was acceptable, the house was quiet, yet, his mind screamed at him loudly with every detailed memory. Suddenly, Sheldon could hear a slight disturbance in the air. It was someone humming. Sheldon sat straight up in the bed and listened intently. It was coming from right under his window. He slipped out and looked down but the top of the metallic awning over the porch blocked his view. Sheldon swallowed, buttoned up his pajama top and moved down the stairs as quietly as he knew how.

He moved to the front door and the humming got clearer. It was the melody that he and Penny had danced to. He opened the door and saw Penny swinging on the porch swing slowly and humming gently. Sheldon took a step onto the wooden deck and it gave him away with a creaking. Penny stopped and looked over and gave a bashful smile, "Did I wake you?"

Sheldon blinked and licked his lips, "No. Although I could say that your presence for the last few days has caused me to be unable to quite obtain REM and then I heard your humming and gladly took the distraction."

Penny gave a crooked smile, "Sorry about that, Moonpie. It has been one hell of a strange journey." She patted the red panted bench swing and Sheldon moved to sit beside her, "Only Memaw calls me Moonpie." As he sat, awkwardly straight, he caught a look at the blonde, still in her yellow dress but barefooted, staring up at the clear sky just as the smile on her face turned to utter sadness. With the power out, the sky was brightly lit and the threatening asteroid seemed to have taken the place of the moon this night. Sheldon felt a sense of dread and his body language changed. It slumped in the swing just as Penny's voice cut smoothly between them, "With all the technology of this world, you're telling me that we couldn't have seen this big bastard coming? Or is it that they KNEW it was coming and KNEW they couldn't stop it, so the government just kept it to themselves, hoping that it would change course."

Sheldon shook his head and was contemplating a response before Penny sighed loudly, "What are we going to do after going to your mother's house?"

Sheldon tilted his head and looked at her, "I-I had no plans after that."

Penny nodded, not looking at him and swallowed, "Then I guess I'll stay a night then head on back to Nebraska."

Sheldon braced his elbow against the back of the bench and looked at her gravely. Her eyes were watery as she slowly turned her head to him, "What?"

Sheldon's jaw clenched against the inside of his cheek. He never thought of Penny not being with him. He-He didn't like that idea. Penny sighed, "You won't be alone, Sheldon. You'll be with your mother and Memaw. I don't want to be the fourth wheel on that little crazy caravan."

Sheldon's voice was deep and very smooth as he spoke her name, "Penny…"

The two locked eyes but a group of streaking lights in the sky caught their attention. The two stared wide eyed and both pushed off the bench swing simultaneously and stood that the railing of the porch as they watched the 6 streaks begin to fall just as a loud rumbling of air filled the silence of the landscape. Sheldon let in a rush of air, "Missiles…"

Penny's head snapped to look at him, "As in… BOOM, CRASH, KILL… Missiles?"

He looked over a very stricken Penny, "As in a self-propelled guided weapon system with targeting and/or guidance system, flight system, engine, and a warhead. Those… they look like they're…"

Sheldon stopped talking as he and Penny watched as the lights of the sky fell down to the city of Houston. Cloud after cloud of fire and smoke lit up their weary eyes and Penny let out a girly gasp. Sheldon stepped off the porch and couldn't take his eyes off the explosions. His eyes watered as many thoughts ran through his head. What if his mother was there? What if more missiles came and fell here? His heart began to race and he finally heard his name being screamed by the blonde, "SHELDON? DAMN IT! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!"

Sheldon turned around and with a dead serious face and spoke deeply, "Go get Memaw! We're going to Galveston."

With no sleep, the three moved down the pitch blackness of I-45. There wasn't a single piece of light that wasn't the headlights of the Yukon. Memaw was in the backseat, asleep. She brought a few of her bags full of clothes and all the food that wouldn't spoil as fast. She even managed to bring a few pots and utensils to cook. Penny and Sheldon, both tense from watching Houston being mindlessly attacked, kept their eyes on the road. Penny refused to look in the rearview least she see the flames of Houston. She drove fast, but kept it only five over the speed limit, Sheldon said nothing about it.

"Your mother is going to be alright, Sheldon."

Sheldon's eye twitched from the suddenness of Penny's voice, "How could you possibly know that? She could've been with her prayer group at some sweaty church in Houston. She could've went to shop, visited some friends… h-how could you know ANYthing about my mother?"

Penny looked over with a bit of anger, but it disappeared as she saw how tightly he was clenching the top of his pants upon his thighs. He was extremely worried about his mother, "I don't know. I just want you to calm down."

Sheldon snapped his neck and looked towards her and opened his mouth to say something, but very bright lights behind them caused him to look behind the car to watch an 18-wheeler racing towards them. Sheldon's eyes go wide, "PENNY!"

The blonde looked in the rearview just in time to see the high headlights and Memaw's head pop up. There was a jerking motion as the 18-wheeler slammed into the back of the Yukon and the SUV was ran off the road and flipped in a ditch. Sheldon remembered hearing his Memaw and Penny letting out a scream. His mind was flashing in and out… he looked over and the bleeding forehead of the blonde beside him… … … he heard the crunching of glass and looked back to see his Memaw was gone… … … he saw someone cut the seatbelt off of Penny and dragging her out of the car… … … he was being dragged out of the wreckage and across the concrete… … … HELL across the top of each finger of a burly man's hand… … … a big man's laugh and a bunch of people screaming and moaning… … … "Penny... Penny… Pen… nny."

* * *

**? Days…**

There was a striking pain against her temple as her consciousness slowly came back. Her arms were over her head and tightly bound. She was afraid of opening her eyes for fear that the pain would intensify. They were ran off the road and were flipped, she remembered that… OH GOD! MEMAW! Her eyes flew open at that thought and she regretted it immediately. Her sight fell to limp, bound, and bloody people, all hanging on the side of a metallic wall. The space was lit by a very dull orange light and shown a very horrific sight. She could hear moans of pain in front and to the side of her. She looked to her left, beside her, and saw more people bound just like her. A woman directly beside her had blood pouring out of her mouth and her face was bludgeoned and swollen. Penny felt a panic… she looked to her right and saw Sheldon right beside her.

"Sh-Sheldon. Sheldon! SHELDON! Oh GOD… please…Please be alive! SHELDON!"

Her eyes began to water but he started to stir, "OH THANK GOD! Sheldon… hey… Hey… look at me!" Sheldon groaned in pain, obviously from the throbbing headache he was having from the gash over his brow. Slowly, he looked over at the blonde and he noticed that he was bound. He furrowed his brow and looked all around him with the same panic as Penny, "What… what is going on?"

She swallowed, "I-I don't know."

"Penny… MEMAW! Where is she? I don't see her!"

Penny shook her head, "I don't know…" She felt a pang in her chest. Memaw… Memaw could be dead, on the side of the road, and being eaten by wildlife, but she wasn't going to say anything to the now overly panicked physicist.

"We seem to be in a semi-truck trailer. I can feel the momentum of travel, so it's obvious that we're moving. There's no telling how much time we've lost. I… I may have seen our kidnapper, but only in flashes. I may have received a mild concussion during our accident. Why have we been taken?" Sheldon looked around at the few conscious people that moaned and whimpered to themselves. The 'freshly' taken seemed to be struggling against their restraints, while some of the others seemed to be deadweight against their shackles. Suddenly, the cab slammed on brakes and a large, domestic wooden crate that had 'Fragile' on the side slammed into the front of the trailer and burst open. Severed, bloody, and fresh body parts spilled onto the floor. Arms and legs jiggled as they rolled off multi-racial torsos and smeared the metal flooring.

Anyone who was conscious was starting to scream. Sheldon and Penny just stared, the horror of the situation freezing them in place until Penny's raspy voice cut into the air, "Oh my God…"

Suddenly, the doors of the short trailer flew open and the sun's light blared into the darkness. People screamed and kicked at the metal behind them as Sheldon and Penny's eyes adjusted to the light. A group of SWAT team members were dragging a very dead body of the man Sheldon recognized as the one whom had dragged him, as four SWAT team members jumped into the trailer. Two of the men gagged at the sight of the severed body parts while the other two started freeing people. A few more team members came and eventually they were all free. Some of the people frantically thanked the men while others were practically dragged out from all the shock. The woman beside Penny was released, but upon inspection she was determined D.O.A. Penny rubbed her wrists as she watched the coroner bag her and roll her out.

The doctor got to her next as they freed Sheldon. The doctor's name was Will Arimendez and he was very handsome to Penny's eyes. He smiled and dimples shown to make him even more handsome. He had a very Mario Lopez/Casper Van Dien going, "You are one lucky woman. That…" he indicated to the dead man on the ground that was covered in blood and tattoos, "… that is Vince Fleming. He has been traveling all over the US kidnapping and butchering people for the past 19 years. That man…" he pointed to a man that was standing right outside the trailer doors gripped a small trinket around his neck and staring down at the body of Fleming, "… that is Lieutenant Maxwell Groom. His wife and 16 year old daughter were victims of Fleming and he vowed to find him… little did Fleming know… Max didn't want to find him just to ask him why. He wanted to wipe him off the face of the Earth before Tallex did."

Penny felt a sudden wave of relief. Because of this serial killer murdering a single man's family, it ended up saving her and Sheldon from sharing the same fate as his wife and daughter. Will gave a smile and a clean bill of health for her as he moved on to Sheldon. She walked towards the doors and was helped down by a few SWAT team members and she moved to the man she had learned was Maxwell Groom. He was standing over the body with a grimace, "Mr. Groom?"

The older gentleman looked up with sunken, tired, green eyes with a five o'clock shadow prickled down the side of his jaw and short brown hair that had been flattened by the helmet he had worn, "Yes."

Penny swallowed and looked down at the body, "I-I want to say two things to you… One, thank you for saving all of our lives. And Two… I am SO SO sorry for your loss. I could only imagine the emptiness you feel just staring down at this lowlife knowing it will never bring back your family, but I just want you to know that, though you might feel that this was all for nothing, it meant everything to me. You not only saved MY life, but the life of someone that means the world to me. Your actions DO matter. To me and all those other people you saved. You are a hero."

The man looked down at the body then back up to the blonde and gave a weak smile, "Thank you, Sweetheart. Thank you." He reached his hand out and she took it as they gently shook each other's hand. Sheldon walked up just as the man walked away.

He looked down at Penny with his bruised eye that no longer was swollen and took a deep breath, "Doctor Arimendez has informed me of several things. First, I did have a mild concussion and he has issued me some pain meds with the orders of resting for 24 hours." He shook the small brown tube container with an eye roll, "Second, we seem to be in Bay Minette, Alabama and had been unconscious for three days. Thirdly, it seems that Doctor Arimendez's cousin has a car we can "purchase" in Mobile about 40 minutes away. He has offered to drive us there in exchange for your extended company."

Penny had never seen the face that Sheldon made as he looked back at the man in question. She swore that it was riddled with complete jealousy, but… it being Sheldon… she didn't think it could've been so she smiled and waved at Will.

Will drove a cute little red Prius. Sheldon insisted that he take the front seat and Penny smiled and let it happen. The trip took less than Penny thought as she had a backseat conversation about her and Will's favorite bands. She would never tell Sheldon that THIS was her kind of conversation. It was determined that he and Penny shared a lot in common with musical tastes and that intrigued her more about the doctor. Sheldon said nothing, which was very peculiar on his part, even as they pulled into a sketchy neighborhood, even for the end of the world.

There were cars all over the two lane road with their doors off and wheels missing. Some looked like the bones of an old kill; nothing but the frame with every piece of meat striped off. They drove slowly as they passed an apartment with a gang of young Hispanics all staring at them with narrowed eyes. Will said nothing as he kept driving; he was reading the numbers on the sides of the buildings. He finally stopped, his brakes squealing just a little bit. They parked right beside a driveway that had a small car garage at the top and a concrete pathway leading to the small porch and a door with three little tear drop windows at the top. Compared to the neighborhood they just drove through, this small subsection looked safe.

Will put the car in park and smiled, "Two things I need to go over: Number 1… I have to warn you guys about my cousin, he is… Different. He is a very nice guy, but not every bulb lights up, if you know what I mean?"

Penny smiled and cocked a brow, "I'm sorry…Hhave you NOT met Sheldon? I think I can take him."

Sheldon scowled at her as Will gave a snort, "Alright. Can't say I didn't warn you. And number 2… There may or may not be a party going on in his backyard. For the past couple of weeks he has been throwing random parties and inviting anyone that'll come. Drugs, alcohol, and sex are all things that may or may not be happening right now."

That caused both of their faces to pull a 'what' look and Will grimaced, "I told him I was coming and that I had someone willing to 'purchase' his car and all I could hear was him saying 'Cool' while there were people hollering in the background."

Sheldon looked at Penny. Hhe didn't fight, he didn't shake his head, he didn't even have a look of panic on his face that would normally be there at the sound of 'drugs, alcohol, and sex' in any conversation that had 'party' in it. In fact, Sheldon looked at her as if to say that whatever SHE chose; he'd go along with. Penny sighed, "Alright Will, I'm going to let you know that I have not a damn DIME to spend on this man's car and I'm NOT sleeping with him to get it. Now, either you set us up and you're not as great a guy as I thought you were or this 'PURCHASE' word is something else. Now… you tell me… what's really going on here?"

Will gave a very handsome smile, "Sex won't be necessary, although I can't promise he won't try, you being a pretty blonde and all. The mode of payment will be simple… winning a challenge." the two looked at each other then back at the doctor and Will finished, "… you'll see."

Sheldon and Penny got out of the Prius just as Will rounded the front of the car. There was a two toned beat throbbing in the air. They followed Will in between the two buildings and headed towards the back of the small home. The further they walked, the louder the music got. As they cleared the alley, the music rang out clear. A techno salsa beat with a Spanish rapper going a mile a minute had a large number of Hispanics, blacks, whites, and even Asians moving and shaking.

Penny could feel eyes all over her as they passed a makeshift bar where a few unsavory characters were leaning. She was still in her yellow dress, but it was lightly stained with blood all over the front… she knew they weren't really looking AT the dress, though. She spared a look behind her to Sheldon. He was walking confidently and looking around as if taking the scene in and making all notes of safe exits, just in case. She wasn't the only one getting eyeballed. Sheldon had some ladies whispering and pointing, but he never noticed, as usual.

They headed towards a large crowd of people surrounding an overweight Cuban who looked no older than 22. He wore big sun glasses on his face and had a blunt firmly pressed in his index and thumb. He passed it and let out a cloud of smoke from his nostrils as a man was telling an animated story in Spanish. The group of males and females laughed at the man's story, but the man in the middle looked towards them then stood up in the middle of the laughter, "WILL! Cuánto tiempo sin verte, primo!"

Will smiled as the two embraced, "Javier! Siempre es bueno verte. ¿Cómo es la fiesta?"

Javier laughed then saw Penny and Sheldon, "¿Quién demonios es esta gente? La rubia es linda."

Will nodded, "Sí lo es, pero ten cuidado ... ella es un poco chica dura. Estos son los dos que te hablé. Ellos están aquí para el coche."

Javier nodded, "Hello. My name is Javier Peláez. Welcome to my party. You're here to try and win my Angel Caótica."

Penny's brow shot up, "Ummm, what the hell is an Angel Cocktail?"

Javier laughed and the crowd behind him joined in. He threw up his hand with an irritated face and looked at Penny with a smile, "Chaotic Angel… it's the name I gave my 1964 Chevrolet Impala."

Penny's eye brows went up, "Wow… ooookay… so, what was the whole 'winning' thing."

Javier looked at his cousin with a tired look, "¿Por qué no les dijiste?"

Will shook his head, "¿Cómo iba a explicar que tenían que salir beber sólo para ganar su coche?"

Javier let out a gruff sigh and snatched the glasses off his face, "Well… chica rubia… you or your hombre delgado have to beat me in a small drinking contest…"

Sheldon and Penny both stared wide eyed at the table they brought them to. The sun was slowly going down and the music shifted beats, but nothing was as weird as the Jenga tower and shots of clear tequila all around it. Penny let out a sigh… she could drink this little douche bag under the table, but she was absolutely rubbish with Jenga. That's why the boys never asked her to play. She turned her back to the table and took Sheldon with her, "We might be in a little trouble here, Moonpie. I can do shots all night, but I am HORRIBLE at Jenga."

Sheldon swallowed, "It is funny, this situation, for I could beat the Hispanic pants off of this miscreant in Jenga, but would lose in all regards to the drinking portion. It seems as if we are yin and yang at the moment."

Penny's brow furrowed, "Too bad I couldn't do the drinking and you could do the playing; we'd get that car for damn sure."

Sheldon pursed his lips, "How about I tell you which piece to take as you continue to down your shots?"

Penny nodded, "I will definitely need someone to keep me on track. When I hit about 20 is when my mind wanders a bit."

Sheldon snorted, "You don't have to drink for YOUR mind to wander."

Penny narrowed her eyes and was about to say something just when they heard someone's throat clear and both turned around. Javier waved his hand at the table, "Who is contestant number one?"

Penny let out a grin, "That'll be me, Sweetie."

Javier looked at Sheldon, "You're gonna let a woman fight your battles for you?" All the people laughed around him but Sheldon blinked and tilted his head, "I assure you that if there were no alcohol present; I would've already defeated you in the battle of Jenga. My tolerance of alcohol is my only weakness, but rest assured, Penny is not just some woman, she is a warrior queen and she will be more than an efficient opponent. You'll be lucky if you don't die from alcohol poisoning before you even get her tipsy."

Penny smiled at the compliment and raised her brow as Javier looked at her, "I hope you have those keys ready; we'll be taking them shortly."

Javier laughed, not AT them, but at the tenacity of his new challengers. He looked to be enjoying this a whole lot more than they were, "You are the visitor so you can go first."

Penny nodded, "What's the objective then?"

Javier smiled, "For every move you make, you take a drink. The one who knocks over the tower is the loser. If you win, you take my car. If you lose, you and your compadre will die."

Penny and Sheldon both flinched at the word 'die' while the rest of the people at the party laughed and snickered. Penny swallowed, avoiding the lanky man's look, and then smiled at their host with no fear on her face, "Fair enough."

The game began and was the tensest moment of either of their lives. Penny normally drank to avoid the tension, but it was currently making it much worse. If it wasn't for Sheldon giving out pointers, she might have had a nervous breakdown.

Javier was getting a bit tipsy at shot 12, but Penny didn't feel a damn thing until she got to her 18th shot. Javier had two close calls as the tower did a small leaning thing one side then the other. That left Penny pondering, well… tipsily grinning and looking at the pretty tower, that she had him right where she wanted him. Sheldon pursed his lips and saw no safe move. With Penny's shaking hand from the liquor, it would be very very difficult to pull off the only move he could see. Sheldon leaned down to almost rest his chin on her shoulder and told her the move. She would have to remove a side brick that would leave a middle brick to hold up 6 layers.

She wasn't COMPLETELY drunk to know that that was going to be a damn hard thing to do. She took in a breath and let it out through her nose. She JUST noticed all the people that were around the table and that the music sort of stopped. She let out a grunted laugh and moved around the table and started to move the block.

Sheldon wasn't being annoying with his direction. He was telling her exact motions she needed to perform to do it correctly. She had the brick out but one of its corners was hinged inside. The tower moved a little and there were gasps all over the crowd. Penny stopped, as Sheldon advised, and explained that her next move would have to be surgery sharp. He explained and Penny nodded. She got a good grip on the brick and he told her to pull with lightning speed like yanking a sheet from underneath stuff so that only the stuff was left but the sheet was firmly in your hands. Penny took one deep breath then snapped her wrists with deadly speed and the brick was gripped in her hands and the tower was still intact. She smiled and the crowd started humming. She placed the brick at the top, gently. The tower wobbled a little, but her turn was over and she took another shot… knowing that she left a deathtrap for the Cuban.

Sure enough, Javier took a brick and it collapsed on the table. The crowd around them all let out a cheer as if it were a futball game and their team just scored. Penny and Sheldon both let out a very heavy sigh of relief as each looked around at the people cheering for them. Will, standing to the side, smiled wide and clapped just as Javier slammed his hands on the table a pushed himself up. Sheldon stood straight, but Penny stayed in the chair. Javier, none too thrilled that he just lost his car, scowled but reluctantly tossed his keys at Penny. As if she hadn't had 23 shots of tequila, she caught the keys in mid air and smiled, "Pleasure doing business with you, Javie."

He snorted and waved his hand for them to follow him. Penny stood up and the liquor seemed to have finally caught up with her. She nearly fell over, but caught herself on the table. She laughed and shook her head, "Doesn't look like I'll be driving tonight."

Sheldon took the blonde's arm and wrapped it around his neck, "Obviously, but a great effort nonetheless."

Sheldon followed Javier and Will inside and they took them to the small garage where a very shiny black Chevy Impala rested. It was a lowrider with flaming wings on the side and Astro Supremes wheels. Javier explained that it had a Pesco hydraulic system, white leather trim with black on the inside for the seats, Bang & Olufsen Advanced Sound System (that he had 'taken' from a man's Audi) with 12', 1200 Watt, Single coil Subwoofers on each side and 18.6 cubic feet of trunk space. Penny held up the key that had an Angel wing keychain along with blood red and black colored rabbit's foot. Javier rubbed the edge of the car and sighed, "Take good care of my hermosa niña."

Penny smiled while still hugging around Sheldon's neck, "Nobody will take better care of an inanimate object better than this guy. She's in good hands." Penny pulled Sheldon down and kissed his cheek and the two men smiled.

Will looked at his cousin, "Ellos no pueden conducir. La chica se bebe. ¿Hay una habitación que podía dormir?"

Javier nodded, "Sólo hay una habitación. Está arriba y la tercera puerta a la izquierda. Van a tener que compartir, sin embargo."

Will smiled, "Si alguien va a tener relaciones sexuales con la chica rubia, que va a ser ese tipo."

Javier furrowed his brow, "¿Por qué él?"

Will looked over at the very drunk blonde and overly confused physicist and smiled, "No tengo ni idea. Parece que es la cantidad justa de loco por ella a amar, sino que ni siquiera parece saberlo."

Javier spoke with his lips in a moue, "¿Es él gay?"

Will looked at Sheldon who was blushing at how Penny's drunken self was trying to wipe away her lipstick mark on his cheek, "Él no actúa así."

Javier shrugged and asked his cousin to relay the message of the only room available being upstairs and the third door on the left. The two followed, Sheldon nearly having to drag her UP the stairs, and paused at the door Will took them to. The Hispanic smiled and explained that this was the guest room and the only one without an occupant, "Well… have fun." Will patted Sheldon on the shoulder and moved back down the hall to the stairs. Sheldon wanted to scream for him to come back, but he had no argument prepared. Penny un-snaked her arm and opened the door to reveal a very lovely setting. The bed was small but looked very comfortable.

Penny made a girly 'Oooo' then sprinted forward and jumped to fall face first into the downy bed. She rolled onto her back and made an 'Aww Yes' as she did a 'bed angel'. Sheldon sighed and walked to the other side of the bed to take a few pillows out of the eight on the bed then took a quilt that was folded at the end and threw them on the floor at the foot of the bed. Sheldon had so many objections to the events that were taking place, but he was far too tired to let them stop him from wanting to sleep.

He slipped out of his shoes but noticed a shadow looming and he looked up and straightened up to see Penny looking at him with a look he had never seen on her face in the 7 years he had known her. She looked up at him with hooded eyes that seemed to be a few darker shades of green. Her eyes were dilated and she licked her lips. It strangely scared him, "What are you doing, Penny?"

She tilted her head very cutely and her loose blonde tresses spilled over her shoulder, "I'm waiting for you to disrobe me and put me to bed."

Sheldon's brow furrowed, "I do believe you are capable of doing that on your own."

There was a gleam in her eye that made Sheldon take a step back and Penny sighed in irritation, "You really are a virgin, aren't you? Do you not see that I'm giving myself to you? Should I write what my intensions with you are for tonight in Klingon? I will..."

Sheldon's heart just got stuck in his throat, "P-Penny… I will not engage in coitus with you. ESPECIALLY when you are as highly intoxicated as you are. What you need is a bottle of water, some aspirin, and a whole lot of sleep. Now, remove your dress and get in bed."

She looked sad as she took two clumsy steps back then yanked her over her head and threw it to the floor leaving her in just a very well fitted pair of light pink boy shorts and a matching bra. Sheldon's jaw clenched at the sight before him. She was absolutely gorgeous. Her hair tumbled over her shoulder then swung against the swell of her cleavage. She looked frustrated with a slight hint of lust, "You are the only man that I have ever met that would look at me like this and NOT want to rip them off me. I-I respect that, but DAMN IT SHELDON… why don't you want me? Why don't you… why don't you want me?" The tears slid down her eyes as moved to the bed and turned off the lamp, the only light in the room, then slid into bed.

Sheldon's mouth came open and he mouth-breathed for a few moments. He closed his eyes tightly and felt a piercing strike right in his chest as he heard faint muffled cries from Penny, who was obviously crying into the pillows. He shook his head and went to the floor in all his clothes and laid on his back for a few moments. He could still hear her sniffles and sobs and it made him twitch. Finally, he groaned and sat up and spoke loudly, "I DO want you. I've wanted you since the day I saw you, but I was never the one YOU wanted. You pursued Leonard and you had him. Did you think I was just going to patiently wait for you to 'NOTICE' me? Have you known me to be a patient man? I knew I would never have you, so I took what was offered. Why is this even an issue, now? Because the world will end and you do not wish to witness it alone? That is selfish. You are NOT the only victim in this, Penny! You are not the innocent damsel that you pretend to be." There was a long pause with nothing coming from the blonde and Sheldon sighed and calmed himself down, "I find you most desirable, but I can never please you the way you wish to be. Being your friend, being beside you so that you will not be alone when the final day comes, that's all I know how to do."

He was suddenly hit in the head with a pillow and Penny moved off the bed and out the door. He let a rush of air out through his nose and slammed the pillow down on the ground beside him. The frustration of the situation was at its peak and Sheldon couldn't lie here on the floor any longer. He set his jaw and pushed himself off the floor and moved to the hall. He clinched his fist and headed downstairs. That woman, she was in nothing but her bra and panties. Why would she go downstairs to that party of horndogs? OH RIGHT, to spite him.

It was well past 10 as he strolled down the stairs and out into the backyard. He didn't see any signs that Penny and her half naked form had even come down here. There was a horrid smell of marijuana all in the air and Sheldon gagged a bit. He moved to the bar where a very large Mexican was cleaning glasses and paused, "Excuse me, have you seen a blonde woman, almost 30 with nothing but a bra and panties on?"

The bartender scoffed, "Women troubles, huh?"

Sheldon looked at the burly man with a look of respect, "Yes. Do you have any advice on the matter of this predicament?"

The bartender looked over the small, dark tinted glasses resting on his nose and smiled, "You give the woman what she wants and she'll keep coming back. You give a woman what she needs and she'll never leave your side."

Sheldon furrowed his brow, "How do you distinguish between the wants and needs of one single person?"

The bartender smiled, "That's the answer all of us men have been trying to answer since the dawn of time. But a real man, he'll give her both." He slid a Diet Coke to Sheldon without him even asking and walked away from the bar. Sheldon didn't think twice about it as he pondered on the bartender's words… _A real man would give her both._ He downed the drink and looked over the party one more time. He didn't see her, so he rushed back into the home he now knew by memory and ran up the stairs. He got to the door of the bedroom and paused. He didn't remember closing the door. He reached for the handle and the moans of a very pleasured woman blared out from it.

Sheldon's stomach fell to the floor and everything twisted inside of him. He felt sick and stumbled away from the door until his back hit the wall. He hadn't given what Penny wanted, so she took it from someone else. He slid to the floor and buried his nearly healed face into his hands and actually cried. He wasn't man enough to barge into the room and snatch the man off her and finish the job… he was… useless… he was useless to her. Just someone to cling to. That made his heart heavier and he sobbed silently… the images of Penny tangled with another man making his mouth go sour. He sat and sobbed for a few moments before he felt and heard someone slide down the wall and sit beside him. He didn't bother looking over… he didn't want anyone's sympathy.

"Who's in our room?"

Sheldon yelped at the suddenness of the blonde sitting beside him, still in her bra and panties, "PE-_NNY?_"

The blonde, not as drunk as before, looked over at him with a slow realization that he had been crying, "Yep. You've been crying, what happened? Did the people in our room bully you out?" She suddenly prickled and clenched her fist as if ready to fight.

Sheldon's mood seemed to brighten up and he shook his head, "No! No… I went downstairs to inquire your whereabouts and came back to find our room was occupied. I thought it was you inside. W-Where did you go?"

Penny pushed the hair behind her left ear and swallowed, "I got pretty sick. I… I'm sorry I just ran out on you and your wonderful speech…" Her face filled with an almost sober realization, "Oh… that's why you were crying… you thought I was having sex with someone. Wow. Thanks for the vote of confidence, Moonpie." He was going to protest but she grabbed his face and smiled sweetly. She pulled him down to her as she rose up and gave him a very powerful kiss. It was soft but firm and full of compassion and love that Sheldon had never felt in anything. It was short, but lifted all the internal organs that had dropped to the floor, his heart being the first. When she pulled away, her hands didn't. They lingered on his bruised jaw as his thumb caressed the swollen flesh of his eye then slid down his chest and finally covered his hands then moved off him completely. She put her back squarely on the wall and sighed as she listened to the sex noises in the room.

"Penny?"

The blonde turned her head, "Yeah."

Sheldon squared his shoulders on the wall and interwoven his fingers and let his hands rest in his lap, "Only Memaw can call me Moonpie."

Penny gave a wholehearted laugh and slumped over to put her head on his shoulder. The two smiled until sleep finally got the best of them. Sheldon was too tired to fight off Penny as she wiggled in between his legs and wrapped his arms around her. He felt her lean back into him and her hair tickled his nose, but soon it didn't matter and before either knew it, their dreams washed over them.

* * *

**10 Days…**

Sheldon was still up right against the wall when he woke… it was the soft smell of apple and the stretching of a half naked body in his arms that jolted him fully awake. She groaned from the obvious hangover she was suffering from and she tried to get up, but with no success. She murmured, "A little help."

As she tried again, Sheldon scooped his hands against her hamstrings and pushed up. The motion worked and his hands ended up cupping Penny's buttocks. He threw his hands down in shock and Penny braced herself on the wall with her right arm and smiled down at Sheldon, "Thanks." She moved to the bathroom and left Sheldon with his heart racing again. Damn that woman and her body…

Sheldon used the bathroom after her and walked out to see a Doctor Arimendez in nothing but a green speedo with a very pretty black woman standing behind him in nothing but a small towel. Will smiled, "Morning Sheldon."

Sheldon nodded, "Doctor. Ma'am."

The black woman gave a smile and a nod and Sheldon moved down the hallway. Now he knew who had resided in their room and engaged in coitus. He was glad it was the black woman instead of Penny. He moved towards the room and grabbed his shoes and bolted out of the room as he heard the shower running. He stopped dead in his tracks as Penny was standing in front of him in a very simple orange dress. They looked at one another with a new sense of something between them. Sheldon cleared his throat, "I assume you found some pain reliever and some water?"

She smiled, "Yep. Ready to go? It's a 7 and a half hour drive to Galveston."

Sheldon rolled his eyes, "Is that all?"

They head to the garage but Javier was standing at the driver's side door. He looked tired without his glasses on his face. Penny groaned mentally. He was probably having second thoughts about giving up his Angel Ca… whatever, "Hey Javie, what's up?"

The Cuban smiled, "Just saying goodbye. You'll take real good care of her, right?"

Penny smiled warmly at the man, "Til the end of the world."

Javier gave a weakened smile, probably due to the drugs and liquor, "You are very beautiful, chica. If your man isn't giving you what you need you could stay here and I'll alleviate that."

Sheldon furrowed his brow and was about to defend his own honor, but Penny beat him to it, "Oh Javie, Sheldon gives me everything I need. If you think his feet are big, you should see his… heart." Penny winked at the Cuban and he snorted then moved around to the door back to the house, "Safe journey, los psicópatas."

Penny blew him a kiss and she and Sheldon hopped into the car and Javier pushed the button to open the garage door. Penny revved the engine and it purred beautifully. Then, suddenly, the sound system blared with unbelievably loud Latin music and Penny quickly off-ed the music to the pleasure of both of them. Penny grinned at the all the complicated buttons and switches under the steering wheel and dared not touch them as the previous owner watched. They drove off carefully and Javier gave one more wave before closing the garage door.

They drove down I-10 into Mississippi and merged onto West I-12 as they hit the Louisiana border. They drove a bit until they had to merge onto another I-10 and headed into Baton Rouge. Penny and Sheldon were both quiet… neither looked at the other in pure awkward/shyness. The two were tense and couldn't find the right words to speak. The sudden braking of the car made Sheldon snap his eyes from outside the passenger side window, forward to see what was happening. The two stared, opened mouth at the most colorful parade crossing over the interstate from US-61 where the four leaf clover ramps were. There were so many people and they were dressed in masks and crazy colors. Penny never been to Mardi Gras, but she imagined it looked something like this.

Penny and Sheldon stepped out of the car and watched with smiles on their face. They could hear Cajun Jazz blaring in the air as a few bead necklaces were thrown their way. Penny caught both of them with a big smile, "I didn't even have to flash anyone."

Sheldon, without so much as a pause or even a glance her way, "Pity."

Penny grinned and shook her head and threw a necklace his way and he caught it with a smile. The both got in the car as the parade passed and they continued to drive down I-10 headed towards Lafayette. It was then that Sheldon's stomach started to growl. Penny grinned, "Guess we should get some breakfast."

Sheldon nodded, "And maybe it would be wise to gather some supplies as well." He pursed his lips and read the small map that was in the glove compartment, "There is a mall not too far out of Lafayette called Acadiana." Sheldon gave verbal commands to reach it and it took no less than 20 minutes. They came to another automobile graveyard that was the mall's parking lot. Penny felt a tinge of fear of even putting the car in park in this deathtrap. She got as close as she could to the front and locked old Angel up. They went to the shattered glass doors and walls of the front of the mall. They walked inside carefully and Sheldon stopped her at the directory that had slices in it from what looked like a large blade. They were apparently on the second floor according to the 'You Are Here' marker.

Sheldon pointed to the vending area on the same floor as they were as Penny couldn't stop staring at the shoe shops on the first. Sheldon was going over the strategy of getting some 'weapons' from the sporting goods shop not too far from the vending machines. He suddenly stopped talking as he noticed the woman nearly salivating on her new dress. He rolled his eyes, "Good Lord, woman, WHEN we get all our supplies, THEN you can go clothes shopping."

Penny squealed and hugged the physicist's neck and he smiled as she skipped down the dulled marble floor of the mall; ready to get the job over with. As she walked by, her eyes catch something on the first floor. She stopped and stared down at a minivan wrecked within a water fountain that in turn flooded most of the entire floor. There was a weak spurt still flowing around the silver van that made it both tragic and beautiful. Penny's hands drifted off the smooth rail and kept moving as Sheldon glanced briefly at the wreckage.

They grabbed a few reusable shopping bags from an abandoned kiosk and slipped into the sporting goods store. Sheldon took a sling shot and some ammo as well as a baseball bat while Penny took a cricket bat. They moved to the vending area and started smashing things. They filled their reusable shopping bags full of chips, sweets, and drinks until it was too heavy to carry. They moved back to the Impala and placed all the stuff in the very clean and big trunk, then headed back in for Penny's shopping spree.

Penny had a skip in her step while Sheldon found himself bemused at her childish happiness. They moved down the stilled escalator to the first floor. The water was seeping into the escalator's bottom caged stair and had flooded the floor with two inches of water. Sheldon sighed and he walked tall so as not to get his socks wet while Penny just removed her flip-flops and splashed like a little kid. She smiled and bent down and cupped her hands in the water and tossed the contents at Sheldon. He dodged it and stared at her with a glare of doom. She seemed to have given into the deadly glare, but as he moved forward… he could feel cold water on his back and he spun around just in time to get a splash against his face.

Penny laughed, but was cut off by a splash into her face… then the two were off to the races. Each bending down and grabbing as much water as they could and throwing it at the other. Each of them were laughing, soaked, and out of breath by the time they reached the store Penny had eyeballed. The mannequins looked overworked as they held poses no normal person would do. Penny let out a sigh and moved into the store with behind her. Penny was headed to the women's section when suddenly, the lights flashed off and the flood lights highlighted the room showing the entire store riddled with faded red laser beams. Sheldon's throat went dry and he looked over at the panel. It had JUST been activated… possibly still on automatic. It really shouldn't matter if they hit a laser, considering the end of the world, but he caught the look on Penny's face and she gave a wink, "Care to play some Secret Agent Laser Obstacle Shopping?"

Sheldon's eyes went wide with the face that she actually knew about that game then he gave a smile, "Ladies first."

Penny lifted her brow, "Oh, you remembered I was a lady."

She had meant it as a joke as she turned away to assess the grid, but Sheldon's smile wiped off his face and he swallowed and had an image of her taking off the dress right in front of him and let out an inaudible sigh. His body had NO problem remembering she was a 'lady' so he had to talk to get out all the energy that was building, "I have never seen you actually participate in this game. I'm pretty sure you are limber during coital exchange, but this will be a different type of flexibility." He paused as he noticed that she was staring at him over her shoulder with an annoyed look, but that just made him need to talk more, "This type of security system stems from the free-electron laser concept wherein the same optical properties as conventional lasers emit a beam consisting of coherent, electromagnetic radiation which can reach high power and use some very different operating principles to form the beam. Of course, Unlike gas, liquid, or solid-state lasers such as diode lasers, in which electrons are excited in bound atomic or molecular states, free-electron lasers use a relativistic electron beam as the lasing medium which moves freely through a magnetic structure, hence the term free electron. Free-electron lasers were invented by John Madey in 1976 at Stanford University where research was done by Hans Motz and his coworkers who built an undulator at Stanford in 1953 using the wiggler magnetic configuration which is at the heart of a free electron laser. Madey used a 24 MeV electron beam and 5 m long wiggler to amplify a signal. Soon afterward, other laboratories with accelerators started developing such lasers. No one could ever know just how much time and effort was spent just making a single beam and they use them to guard clothing."

Penny shook her head, "Those poor scientists…"

Sheldon gave a somber look, "Indeed."

Penny rolled her eyes, threw her flip flops to the side, and started in on the first laser. It was angled down to the left but the one almost behind it angled opposite then there was a big gap and a web of lasers at every angle after that. Penny took two steps back, bumping into the still wet Sheldon, then bolted forward and dove over the first two lasers and rolled back to her feet. Sheldon's eyes bulged at the acrobatics of that one little move, but he hadn't seen anything yet.

Penny did a split and went backwards underneath a four-row laser set. Sheldon moved to the side to watch the wet dress wearing blonde stretching her body up then snaking it down to the ground to slide her lower body provocatively against the floor through the next set. The fabric clinged to her every curve as she moved. He could see the outline of her breasts, the top of her thighs, and the indentions of her spine. Sheldon found his jaw unhinged and his mouth dry just from watching his friend doing the sexiest thing he had ever seen a woman doing, ever.

He could see why men desired her body, now. The way it moved and bent and how precise its actions were and its oh so delicate shape. He wanted to taste her skin, run his fingers down her curves, press it so close that their skin kissed, and make her sing those moans to his mother's God. Sheldon had to look away because his body was reacting in a very primal way. He tried to calm his erection, heart rate, and breathing down back to normal, but before he could he heard Penny's exclamation of victory. He cringed at what she would think of him… having an erection just because she was playing a game. He shook his head and played his character, "Now, j-just pick something out so we can go."

Penny smiled as she went through a rack she had eyed from the beginning and took a few tops then did some ballet moves to get to the pants and took a few there. Soon, her ninja movements had her in the back where he could no longer see her and he was relieved but nervous. He had somehow calmed his erection's stiffness, but it was still threatening to 'pop back up', "Penny, I can no longer see you. Please be careful."

"I will Big Daddy Cooper."

Sheldon made a grimace, "DOCTOR Big Daddy Cooper, you mean."

He could hear her laugh and it made him smile.

She was in the back for almost 30 minutes and Sheldon was getting impatient. Before he had a chance to yell back to her, his eyes shot open as he heard her running and saw that her arms were full of clothes and she was skipping through the lasers in a brand new outfit, shoes included, of course. The alarm was weak, but it honked the best it could. It sounded hoarse. She stopped at him and smiled up at his wandering face, "Couldn't do the whole 'sexy thief' thing with an armful, now could I?"

He shook his head then looked at the pile she had in her hands. They looked like men's clothes. They moved out of the store and waded through the water to the escalator then went up. At the top, Penny turned to him and pointed to a bench against the glass rail. She threw the pile on top and started yanking clothes out. She threw two shirts over the rail with jeans, and Superman boxer shorts. Sheldon's eyes went wide and looked at her, "How do you know my size?"

Penny smiled, "Oh Moonpie, the things I DON'T know about you. Now, get out of those wet clothes… all of them." She gestured to the boxer shorts and the bag full ankle socks then turned around so as not to watch him. She was glad he hadn't said anything about the jeans.

Penny was a woman of curiosity and was never known for her restraint. She gave a wicked grin and turned her head just slightly but shot it back and blushed. What cruel God gave Sheldon THAT package but no sexual desire? Her mind could only wander into its perverse ways at all the things she'd do to that pale, tall virgin behind her. If he just gave her the slightest nod, she'd do things to him that would get text books BURNED. She would be his greatest teacher if only he would be willing to take her class. She licked her lips and closed her eyes. She had never been more sexually infuriated in her life and she had less than 10 days to live… that broke the moment. _Less_ than 10 days, that thought made her stomach sink.

"Ready."

Penny turned around and couldn't believe her eyes. He was wearing faded jeans with the long sleeve undershirt she got and red shirt with a piano keyboard graffiti-ed down the middle with the white seemingly dripping a little ways down that smeared a message, 'We'll Dream, You Listen'. With his hair wet and spiked all over the place… he looked like a man that she would gladly show to her bedroom, "Look at you…" she fake-sniffled, "… all grown up!" She smiled at his 'really' face and dared to look him over one more time before clapping her hands, "Alright. I'm good! Let's go before I see a candy store."

They got back to the car, still intact, and got in then headed back to the interstate. As they drove, Penny couldn't help but wonder where all the people went. Louisiana was just as barren and as scarily abandoned as California. There was no one on the interstate, no one at the gas stations, not even a sole at the Walmarts they passed, "Where do all the people go?"

Sheldon, who was looking out the window, looked over at her with a curious glance. She took that as a note to further explain her question, "Every state we go to, there is only a hand full of people still there. Where the hell are they?"

Sheldon looked back outside the window but spoke, "Human nature is something that is influenced by culture, attitudes, emotions, values, ethics, authority, rapport, hypnosis, persuasion, coercion, and/or genetics. Not one person will act anything like another. There may be similarities, but not the same reasoning behind it. Some people might be hiding, some may have killed themselves, some might even be doing what we are doing… travelling. Knowing that death approaches, it could change everything for a person. Their behavior, their routines could be easily changed and, in so, the person themselves."

Penny let out a curious sigh and she spoke to him, "How badly has it changed us?"

Sheldon didn't look at her, "You have only consumed alcohol to retain us a vehicular transport. You have not engaged in coitus. You have become less irritable because you no longer have to deal with your minimal job. You are the blossoming beauty that caught both Leonard and my eye the first moment we met you. As for me, it hasn't changed me at all."

"BULLSHIT! I've kissed you without you freaking out. You shook a few people's hands and didn't faint at the sight of blood and severed body parts. You fought a gigantic ogre and got punched in the face a few times just to save me AND… you're wearing jeans and haven't complained about it once. If only you'd start drinking, smoking, and fornicating, I'll finally have you normal." Penny smiled when he got him to look over at her.

Sheldon opened his mouth to say something, but Penny slammed on brakes and yelped, "Oh my GOD!"

They were where they needed to merge back onto I-10 off of US-287, but there was a huge airplane crashed, its fire's long ago extinguished by nature. Penny and Sheldon get out of the car to look at the wreckage. They stood side-by-side just taking in the monstrous crash and Sheldon murmured, "Those poor bastards."

Penny followed his sight and saw the mummified corpses of the passengers and she gasped then buried her face into his shoulder. Sheldon twitched then ran his hand down her head and rested it on the back of her neck, "Penny, they didn't feel anything when it crashed. Instantaneous and merciful death, we should all be that lucky."

Penny pushed away but her face was twisted in sadness, "Those were someone's loved ones, Sheldon. That doesn't make you sad? What if your mother was on there?"

Sheldon looked mortified and Penny looked regretful, "I- I'm sorry. I went all girly emotional on you."

Sheldon, still staring at the plane, swallowed and felt a panic growing, "You're right. What if, what if my mother is dead somewhere… just like Memaw? All alone."

Penny touched his cheek and his eyes snapped to hers, "Calm down, Sweetie. Calm down. Look, let's get back in the car and go around we have Texas waiting for us and your mother, who is alive and well."

They drove across the big dirt median and around the crash then back to the other side and kept traveling. Neither one speaking, one from dread and the other from determination.

They were on Fred Hartman's bridge when the awkward silence was broken by Penny, "Oh look… Pasadena Freeway Frontage Road, it's like destiny… DESTINY I SAY!"

Sheldon, snapping out of it, rolled his eyes, "Poppycock."

Penny smiled seeing his body language relax a bit.

They got to the Gulf Causeway and she marveled at the ocean and the wavy retaining walls. Sheldon smiled to himself how one person could find such beauty in trivial things such as a barrier between two highways. Soon enough, they were in Galveston and headed to his mother's home.

Night had taken over and the power seemed to be out here. They got to Sheldon's old home and parked the Impala right beside it. Sheldon jumped out and ran to the house. Penny watched the physicist with sad eyes. She had a feeling momma Cooper wasn't in. Sheldon found the hide-a-way key and opened the door and almost took it out with his shoulder. He ran in yelling 'Momma' and Penny could hear it echoing around the desolate neighborhood. It broke her heart to hear such desperate calls. She popped the trunk of the Impala and took the bags of stuff they got and followed him inside.

She went to the kitchen and dropped the bags and noticed his calls had gone mute. She moved towards the stairs, "Sheldon?"

No answer. OH GOD. Her eyes went wide, grabbed a flashlight, and moved fast up the stairs. Her mind came up with scenario after scenario, but her mind didn't ready her for what she saw when she got up to the only door open, upstairs with Sheldon standing in it.

Missy and a man were lying on the floor. Missy had a bullet in her head and the man had put the same gun into his mouth and pulled the trigger; their fingers overlapping in the spotlight of the flashlight; covered in their own blood. It shocked Penny and she threw her hands over her mouth and the flashlight fell to the hardwood floor. After the initial shock of the scene, her eyes scanned Sheldon's profile. Nothing on his face… no emotion, no tears, no twitches… Nothing. He stepped back then walked around her avoiding her eyes and moved to the head bedroom, opened it up, and then slammed it shut behind him.

Penny stared at the door with her eyes burning with tears. She looked back at the scene in what looked like WAS Missy's old room and she felt an anger towards the dead bodies, "You IDIOT!" She screamed and reached in and slammed the door shut. She couldn't hear anything coming from the room Sheldon locked himself into, but she decided to let him be. A part of her was fearful that HE'D try something like that, but another part of her mind chastised her for being stupid. She stopped the welling up of emotion just long enough to yell, "I'm going downstairs. You want anything to eat?"

There was no answer. Penny picked up the flashlight, turned, and headed towards the stairs and down them. The light of the flashlight was blurred by the tears spilling from her eyes.

She goes to the kitchen and moves to the sink, then stops. She put her hands, palm down, onto the counter then slowly descends her face until it rested on top of them and soon scooped her arms around her head and cried harder than she ever had. It wasn't for Missy and her stupid but smart suicide, it was for Sheldon having to FIND his twin sister like that. That made her cry harder. The image of Sheldon's face riddled in pure sorrow and not able to understand Missy's actions, but it was the fact that there was nothing she could do for him…

* * *

**9 Days…**

It was about 4 in the morning as Penny was awoken by her body jerking her awake. Leonard once told her that the reason your brain does that was because your heart rate had gotten too slow so it jolts you awake to keep you alive. She thought it was nonsense, but very cool that her brain still wanted to live. She sat up and looked around the dead silent living room. It was so quiet. No night songs from bugs and frogs outside even though it was 78 degrees outside so it should've been a symphony outside. It was a gut-wrenching silence.

She ran her hand through her hair as she let out a painful sigh. She pushed herself up and took the flashlight on the table. She moved all around downstairs and came to a hallway where there were two doors; one on the left and one all the way down. She opened the door to the left and was happy to see a bathroom. She went in and used it… happy to see the plumbing still worked. She washed her hands and got back to the hallway and eyed the door at the end. She had a curiosity of what THAT door had behind it. She didn't want to open it and find Mary gripping a crucifix to her chest, but she couldn't just sit in the cold darkness. She goes to the door and opens it…

She let out the breath she was holding as she just finds an empty bedroom. There was a big bed with a plethora of cabinets surrounding it. There was a cute little table with a quaint little lamp on top of it with a picture in front of it. She flashed the light on it and gave a warm little smile at the family picture. The only one not smiling was a little boy with dark hair on top of his head and beautiful blue eyes, "Sheldon…"

She took in the two males she had never seen before. The older man looked overly handsome with a prickly beard and a well manicured mustache that matched the dark hair on top of the man's head. He had gorgeous blue-green eyes and one of the sexiest smiles she had ever seen on a man. There was a boy, about 13, who was 'fat' but tall and had his father's blue-green eyes. Her attention went to Missy and she felt her stomach tighten.

She moved away from the picture and flashed her light around the room. The spotlight reflected off an oval, body mirror in the corner then highlighted all over the room. She let out a sigh and turned back towards the door. Her flashlight hit a tall figure right in front of her and she screamed and backed up until her legs hit the edge of the bed. It took her two heartbeats to calm down, "DAMN IT, Sheldon… You scared the HELL outta me."

He swallowed, "I apologize."

She stood up and took in a deep breath, "It's alright. Look… Sheldon I'm…"

Sheldon cut her off, "Penny… I do not wish to speak of the event."

She sighed in relief and licked her lips as she watched Sheldon move around the room, "Sorry about intruding on your mother's room. I-I got restless."

Sheldon shook his head at all the pictures on his mother's wall, "I forgive you."

She nodded and made a move to leave.

"Penny."

She turned around and put the spotlight on his face and he threw his arm up and squinted his eyes and she stifled a laugh as he looked towards the tunnel of light, "I'm sorry you had to witness that heinous action. Thank you for allowing me time to gather my thoughts."

She put down the spotlight so he could see her face, "Sweetie, your sister probably had a reason for doing what she did, though stupid as it was. Love makes people do stupid things. You don't have to thank me, by the way. We're friends." She gave a sad smile and went back to the living room.

Sheldon sat on his mother's bed and his eyes scanned one more time. They fell to the picture in front of the lamp and scowled. He hated pictures of himself especially while others look unbelievably happy. Happiness was such a fleeting feeling. When it came, it only came in doses. It was a drug and Sheldon detested narcotics.

He had no idea how long he was in his mother's room, but when he exited and headed to the living room, there was a slight blue haze from morning coming and Penny was gently sleeping. He came over and looked over the backrest of the couch. Her hair was drifted over her profile and Sheldon reached down and moved the strands behind her ear. He leaned down and kissed her on her temple, right beside her eye and let it lingered there. He moved back to his mother's room (not wanting to go back upstairs) and fell asleep on her bed.

Sheldon woke up to the smell of bacon, biscuits, and eggs. He moved out and saw Penny's blonde head over the back rest of the couch. He moved towards the kitchen and saw a plate with a napkin over it. He looked underneath it and smiled at the well cooked meal and took it along with a fork sitting out for him. He moved around the couch and sat beside Penny, who was combining the biscuits, bacon, and eggs and eating them sloppily and happily. He eats his portions separately. The two, done eating, sat in silence for a few moments before Penny asked, "So, any place you believe your mother would be?"

Sheldon sighed, "Where ever my mother is I'm sure she is happy. I don't want her to come home to see Missy and that man."

Penny ran her hand through her hair, "Maybe, maybe we should bury them just in case she DOES come home."

Sheldon looks at Penny with a curious look.

Penny was throwing dirt over her shoulder with the shovel as Sheldon did the same. Penny picked a spot under a tree in the backyard, having to ignore Sheldon's 'Trees have Roots' speech. Once it was deep enough for Doctor Depth, they grabbed the comforter off of Missy's bed that they used to drag down the stairs and out the back door, and each pulled until the two bodies fell into the hole and taking the comforter with them. Sheldon stared down at the corpses with a pained face then he and Penny began to toss the dirt back on top of them.

Sheldon and Penny stood over the newly filled grave. Sheldon didn't want anything said so they just stood silently. Penny took out a pocket knife she found in the house and moved to the tree. Sheldon looked over at her curiously as she carved, 'Today and always, beyond tomorrow, you will always be by my side, for you are my friend, my lover, and my soul-mate.' Then underneath, she carved 'I love you, Missy.'

Penny blew on her carving and stood back to be beside Sheldon. She put the knife away and smiled at her work. She was surprised by a warm hand slithering into hers and she looked down at her and Sheldon's hands interlocked then she looked up at the teary eyed profile of her friend and gave his hand a friendly squeeze.

They got back to the house just as the sun was falling behind the trees. Penny went to take a shower in the downstairs bathroom as Sheldon took one upstairs. Penny got out, wearing just a long t-shirt she took from a room upstairs that was obviously Sheldon brother's room. She saw the shirt and HAD to have it. It was a Test Specimen Radiohead shirt with a big Test Specimen Bear on the front and three little Test Specimen bears on the back under the collar that had 'Sex, Work, Death' on each of their shirts with 'Um, Yeah, Whatever' in speech bubbles above their heads.

She moved back to Mary's room and paused. She loved this room and she had no idea why. She headed right to the oval body mirror. She looked at herself awkwardly. Almost 8 more days to live and she was still worried about the way she looked. She sighed and tugged down at the shirt then looked back up to see Sheldon right behind her with just his plaid pajama pants on and the spiky wet hair that made her heart flutter. She turned to get a real look at him and he looked sternly behind her and pointed to the mirror, "Her."

Penny turned around and was met with her reflection of herself and him pointing at her and she turned back around, "What?"

He took a few steps forward then licked his lips and looked her in her eye with the still stern look on his face, "You said that at any time I find someone I wanted that all I had to do was point and say 'Her' and you would would rope her in for me. Well…" He goes to her, turns her around to face the mirror, and points right at her in the reflection then leans down to where his chin almost touched her shoulder and whispered, "… her."

Penny let out gruff grunts of air and slowly turned her body making Sheldon's fingers caress her arms until she was facing him and their eyes met, hers full of doubt and curiosity and his full of love and want. He leaned forward just slightly, his eyes still gazing into hers and he spoke so softly, "Penny, I want you to be my first and my last."

Penny's eyes were wide and wet but her mouth was twisted in a smile. He leaned forward again and closed his eyes and their lips were together.

Penny's Radiohead shirt was taken off of her body so slowly as Sheldon's lips tasted at every point of her body he could. His tongue flicked at the perked nipple as Penny took the shirt off the rest of the way but not before she let out a joyous moan. She was all but bare to the physicist as he led her to his mother's bed. She was leaned back onto the top as by his long, strong hands until the bed welcomed her with a creak of the springs. Sheldon's hands, though braver than they have ever been, were still merely on her curves, but his mouth was anything but still. It was taking in her the flavor of her breasts, then traveled to her neck as his body covered hers.

Penny wrapped her arms around his torso and let her fingernails lightly dig into his back. She kissed at his shoulder as the pleasure began to build up more and more. She could feel the cool fabric of the pajama pants along with his very warm erection being hid underneath right up against her inner thigh and it caused her to move her hands to push him away from kissing her neck so that she could wrap her arms around his neck and pull him in for one of her most passionate kisses she could give him. Those made his hips grind down right into her sexual core. She pulled away to let out a strong moan as her head lolled back.

He nipped at her neck as his hands went down and removed the pants that kept them apart. He pushed himself on his knees then got them off completely and tossed them to the side and swallowed deeply. He found her eyes in the darkness and tried to get his breathing to slow. She could tell he was nervous so she spoke, "I'm not expecting a big bang here, Sheldon… just… just being with you… being the only one that will ever be like this with you… that's enough. If you aren't ready… then I won't push you."

Sheldon moved around the bed and got in beside her, "If have never wanted anything more in my life… I-I just… I don't know if I can p-p-please… you."

Penny felt touched and turned on at the same time… it was strange. She oriented herself then flipped him like she did at their couple's competition and she pinned him, but this time, she straddled him and she kissed his mouth instead of his nose. He was shaken, but soon he melted into the kiss. She did the kissing down the body and Sheldon got tense when he felt her teeth lightly nibble his hip, but everything went bright white when her hand clasped professionally around his shaft. He let a hiss through his teeth as she simply stroked his penis. His climax was coming at him so fast, but Penny handled it was finesse and sentiment. She was doing this just for him and before he had the time to do anything… his seed spilled all over her hand.

He was horrified and was about to scramble for towels, but was stifled by Penny's mouth licking the cum off her hand and then his penis. The action caused him to feel queasy, but at the same time… he was hard again. Penny licked her lips and looked at him to gage his reaction, funny, now SHE was nervous. He sat up then scooped the blonde into his arms and pulled her right into him then kissed her. He tasted himself on her and that sickened him but made him feel powerful. She pushed him back onto his back gently and positioned him at her entrance. With an inhale through her nose, she took in the slim but long instrument and almost orgasmed right there. It felt so damn good… She couldn't open her eyes to see Sheldon's face because of how delicious it was to her. She had to lean herself against Sheldon's chest with extended arms. She could feel her walls throbbing against the long member inside of her, which was equally throbbing. It didn't help that Sheldon let out a gruff hum of pleasure.

Her nails were not so gently dug into his chest as his penis twitched against her walls and she had to tighten them to stop it. She pistoned herself up and down slowly with her knees on either side, keeping her balance with her hands still pressed into his chest then slid down to his abdomen. She was building up her climax quickly… she hadn't had sex in a long time. She didn't scream or have to make any kind of fake noises she did for others. This felt so fucking good that it muted her. Making noises took away from the feeling and before she knew it, her body was convulsing and she finally let out a shuddering moan. She didn't have time to be shocked as Sheldon gripped her hips and rocked himself into her through her orgasm. She let her body fall into his where her arms stopped her on either side of his head. He lifted her hips just slightly as he kissed her and drove into her long and deep then soon enough… he came.

He held her to him as they both came down and were panting hard. They lazily looked at one another and their lips were covering each other's again. Sheldon caught Penny's sexy moan as he pulled out then her kiss deepened. They finally broke apart and Penny kissed at his ear before whispering softly, "Consider me, pleased." He smiled and kissed her shoulder then her neck and before either knew what hit them… they were asleep.

* * *

**8 Days…**

Sheldon woke up completely naked with only Penny on him. She had one of her legs wound around his left leg and her left arm flung over his chest as her cheek rested on his shoulder with his arm around her. He gave one of the happiest smiles that ever plagued on his face. He kissed the top of her head and took in the Mane 'N' Tail shampoo smell from his mother's shower. His… his first time… it was amazing. He thought it would be awkward and gross, but Penny made it one of the most intimate moments he could ever have with another person… with one of the best friends he had ever had. He was afraid this… this beautiful thing that she shared with him… that it would ruin their friendship, but… even as he stares down at her naked and pressed up against his person… he felt more love and respect than he ever did for his blonde neighbor.

He was about to wake up Penny and let her know how much she meant to him when the sound of someone opening the door and keys jingling filled their ears… that got Penny awake, but it was Mary's voice that made the two rip and roll away from one another and darting around the room in fear. Penny grabbed her shirt and bolted behind the oval mirror while Sheldon quickly yanked up his pants just in time for his mother to walk into her room and scream at the sight of him. A bunch of women in Sunday dresses came running in with mace and walking canes ready to attack, but soon, Mary cried and scooped her shirtless son into a big hug.

Mary talked out her bible study class and left Sheldon to 'find his shirt' and waited until she was outside saying goodbye to the older women before yanking the blonde and both made a run for the stairs. Penny was dragged all the way to the end where 'his room' was and he slammed the door shut and locked it. The two were breathing hard and their hearts were beating a mile a minute. Penny sat on his bed, naked, with her shirt in her hand and they looked at one another then started laughing. Sheldon had smaller shorts that had a draw string and Penny gladly put them on along with his brother's shirt. Penny laughed at herself as she looked like she was just transformed into a woman from being a tall man. Sheldon got into his old plaid, Super hero motif and they made their way downstairs.

Penny was fast as she swung herself into the living room just as Mary came in to see Sheldon coming down the stairs. Mary gave her son a big smile, "Is that yer car out there? It's very… interesting. Anyways, what do I owe this pleasure?"

Sheldon looked into the living room and Mary's eyes followed to see Penny giving a corny wave, "Penny! Hello dear. You look like yer' glowing. Now I know why my boy had no shirt on."

Mary looked calmly at a very guilty looking Sheldon. Mary stared daggers at the tall man for a very intense moment, but suddenly… her eyes soften, "I never thought I'd see the day my baby boy would fall in love." She brought her son's head down and kissed him on his forehead and then she moved to Penny to scoop her up her arms.

Sheldon moved to Penny as Mary moved to the kitchen. Sheldon HAD to tell his mother about Memaw and Missy, but he had no idea where to begin. Mary yelled if the two wanted any breakfast and was telling them that she went with her bible study group to Dallas to be 'one with the sinners'. Penny took his hand and he jerked it out as Mary came in with a tray. Penny understood, but it still made her chest ache and she moved to a single chair beside the couch. Mary handed Penny a cup of green tea with honey and Penny smiled warmly and sipped at the tea as she handed a cup to Sheldon then headed back into the kitchen.

Sheldon looked over at the blonde, who was staring into her tea with a dejected look, and was about to apologize when Mary's voice called out to them, "How long have you two been here?"

Sheldon let out a sigh of frustration, "We got here yesterday, Mother. H-have you heard from Missy, at all?" That caused Sheldon to get a strange look from Penny.

Mary called out, "Last time I heard, her and Jonah Gilbert were pregnant."

Penny gasped into her tea and she put it down gently before it scalded her. Once she did, her hands came together over her mouth like a gas mask and tears started to flow. Was that why? They didn't want to bring a baby into this? Penny stood up abruptly and ran to the bathroom leaving Sheldon staring after her. Mary's voice called out again, "Is everything alright?"

Sheldon stood up and let out an angry, "No."

He moved to the bathroom and tried to open the door, "Penny, please let me in or I'm going to knock."

Through the door, Penny's voice (it was obvious that she had been crying) spoke, "I… I want to go home."

Sheldon rattled the doorknob, "Penny, open the door."

He heard the click as she turned the doorknob and he pushed himself in, not caring his mother was in the house. He closed the door behind him and locked it back and saw Penny go back to the fluffy toilet seat and bury her face in her hands, "I want to go home, Sheldon. I- I can't stay here. You're embarrassed about what happened between us, your sister was pregnant and killed herself… your grandmother was killed in a car accident with us… I just… I can't STAY here." She cried into her hands and Sheldon fell to his knees right in front of her.

"I am not embarrassed by our night of coit… love. I was not ready to show affection in front of my Southern Baptist mother on the eve of the end of the world. I… I love you and I will never be as happy as I am with you…"

The two froze and she looked down at him and he looked up at her as Penny stood up straight on the toilet, "Wh-what? What did you say?"

He knew he blew it… he used the L word and he swallowed ever so deeply, "I… I-I am…"

Penny stood up, making him pause and stand up as well, "You… You love me?"

He looked at her with a very serious face, "I do…"

She sniffled and wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him into her. With relief, he wrapped his arms around her. She pulled away and gave him a triple peck on his lips every so softly then a real kiss that almost made his knees buckle.

When Sheldon opened the door, he and Penny were met with the penetrating glare of Mary Cooper. Penny stepped in between the Coopers, "Mrs. Cooper…"

Mary raised her brows, "You can call me Mary, Penny."

Penny smiled, "Mary… Sheldon and I have a really long story to tell you and… we fear that most of it will be a painful to hear."

Mary looked at Sheldon's sad face and her eyes softened and went wide, "Why don't you just get to tha painful parts, now."

They moved to the living room and Sheldon told his mother everything, except the sex in her bed part. Mary looked outside to see the freshly dug grave and she started crying uncontrollably into her son's shoulder. He looked over his mother to see Penny wiping her face. They soon got the physicist's mother calmed down as Penny made her some tea. Mary took it with a smile and looked from her son to the beautiful blonde, "Well, at least one thing came from this horror."

Sheldon and Penny looked at one another in confusion as Mary put down her tea and took one of each of their hands and put them together, "You found each other. A little bit late, but… love can be quite the late bloomer and comes when no one expects it."

Penny blushed and was waiting for Sheldon to yank his hand out of hers again, so she left it loose. Her eyes snapped over to his when he snaked his fingers in between hers and squeezed it gently. He smiled at her and she couldn't help but share it. Mary gave a motherly smile and leaned over to Penny, "I was rootin' for you, Darling." She winked at the blonde and Penny let a snorting laugh out.

Mary washed her comforter then cooked a damn good fried chicken meal and left Sheldon and Penny to do the dishes. The two laughed and talked like an old married couple as Mary grinned at the two cute kids, but had a blast of sadness for her daughter and mother. Mary announced that she was going to bed and that she better not hear any kind of fornicating during the night. That made Sheldon go full red and Penny smiled.

Mary stopped and turned around, "Penny dear, Goodnight. Thank you for taking care of my son."

Penny put up the last dry dish and listened as her door closed. Sheldon leaned against the sink and watched the blonde. She finally looked over at him with a stern look, "I'm… I'm going back to Nebraska tomorrow."

He pushed off the sink and looked at her, "Alone?"

She nodded, "I brought you home just like I promised, now I would like to spend my final days with my family. Helping bury your sister made me realize that I don't want a single day to go by without telling my family how much I love them."

She was looking at her feet and didn't see the look of despair on his face. As she talked, Sheldon's heart began to burn. He couldn't imagine a time without Penny beside him yet, it wasn't his place to tell her that he wanted her to stay. She stopped talking and her eyes drifted up, "… you understand?"

Sheldon had one of the greatest battles mankind would ever know right inside the mind of a boy prodigy. The battle over Penny. His mind was at odds and ends, until his mouth moved… the words not matching his face, "I understand."

Penny smiled sadly, "I'll take the couch. I'll be out before you hear the first cock crow."

She walked up to him and pecked him on the cheek before heading to the couch and Sheldon's entire body rumbled in sorrow. He couldn't stop his hand from punching the front of the fridge then, in frustration, he buried his face in his hands. He-he was too much of a coward to go into the living room and tell her that she couldn't leave. He took two long steps towards the living room… but his body turned and he headed up the stairs.

* * *

**7 Days…**

He woke to the smell of waffles and maple syrup. For just a brief moment, it distracted him, but it wasn't but half a beat that had him kicking off the covers and running down stairs and out the front door. The Impala was gone. His eyes burned, his throat was clogged, his stomach and heart tumbled at his feet and he couldn't catch his breath, but when he did… his butt fell to the top of the porch and he cried into his hands.

Mary stepped out onto the porch and looked down at his son, a boy that didn't even cry at his own father's funeral or when he was beaten by his drunk father, was now balling his eyes out because of a girl. She was torn. She didn't know if she should be happy that he had finally found the one or if she should be angry that she left him. Mary let out a sigh and did what a mother does best, she sat beside her son and absorbed his tears within her hug.

* * *

**6 Days…**

It was midday and Mary took three blossoms from her Lily Bush and Sheldon walked her down to the tree where they buried Missy. Sheldon was still tender about Penny, but he was cooping just the same. He really did love his mother, but he couldn't stop his mind from begging for Penny.

They both stood at foot of the grave and Mary placed the blossoms on the grave: one for Missy, one for the boy, and one for her mother. Mary told Sheldon to bow his head and Mary said a prayer. Instead, Mary quoted Corinthians, "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away."

Sheldon's eyes opened slowly as the words made his heart throb painfully. He looked up to see the carving that Penny did on the tree and clenched his fist. He looked at his mother, whose head was bowed in silent prayer, and he bolted back to the house, missing the smile on the lips of his mother.

Sheldon jumped into the back door and ran until he got into the living room. He found his mother's keys and ran to the front door. His mother's Oldsmobile was parked beside where the Impala was and he got in. He cursed his nature as he quickly checked all the mirrors and put on his seatbelt and then had to move the seat… causing him to have to do the damn thing over again. He finally put the key in the ignition. He calmed his heart and put the big, honking car in R. It thumped and jerked a little making Sheldon's eyes go anime round. He calms himself and heads down the driveway backwards at a snail's pace. Before he could even get into the road… a car pulled up beside him fast in the drive way and causes him to scream like a girl. He looked over and his body tingled and his eyes watered, Penny was staring at him in disbelief, but very happy. Sheldon was so relieved that he let go of the brake as he wiped his eyes and he backed right into a ditch.

Penny desperately honked her horn, but it was too late… the Oldsmobile back into a sharp angled ditch and caused the car to lean back into a telephone pole and leave the car sticking straight up between the pole and the sheer ditch. Penny got out of the car and ran, scared that Sheldon was hurt. He opened the door and almost tumbled out with not a scratch on him, and he backed up with a perplexed look on his face. In the middle of the ditch, he looked up to see Penny doing a spider-monkey jump right into him and they both fell to the muddy ground. They kissed over and over again as Penny explained, "I just… couldn't… leave you… I got to… the Oklahoma Kansas line and turned back around."

The two looked at one another, her on top of him, and she whispered softly, "I love you, too."

Sheldon smiled slowly and whispered back, "You… you said it."

She smiled, "You said it first."

They kissed; slow, deep, and gentle. Sheldon could feel the mud seeping into his clothes, but it was the sweet kiss of the blonde that mattered most. After an euphoria of a brief moment, Penny got off and helped him up. They checked one another before turning around to look at the greatest car accident, ever. Mary Cooper's Oldsmobile was sticking perfectly straight up in the air and Penny couldn't stop it from coming… the laugh. She bent over laughing hard and Sheldon soon joined her.

"How in the name of the good Lord…"

Mary's voice reigned above them and the two look up as she looked down, "Penny dear, good to see you back. SHELDON… explain!"

Penny went back to laughing and Sheldon couldn't help but to chuckle here and there as he explained… soon enough… Mary was staring at the accident for too long because soon… she joined them.

* * *

**5 Days…**

Mary kissed her son on the cheek and gave Penny a huge hug. She didn't even ask them to not fornicate in her house as she told them she was leaving for another Bible Studies trip and wasn't coming back. It was tearful goodbye as she held her son for another very long hug as she whispered softly, "You take care of her. You take real good care of her, Shelly."

Sheldon hugged his mother tighter than he has ever hugged her, "I will. I love you, mom."

Tears flowed down her face, "I love you more."

Mary finally broke away from Sheldon and she went to Penny, again. She cupped the blonde's face and looked her real good in her eyes, "You love my son! You love him so much that the devil gags from how sweet it is." She kisses the girl on the forehead and lingered there as if she were her own daughter, "I love you, dear. Love my boy till the end."

Penny's cheeks were wet, "You can count on my, Mrs. Cooper."

Mary rubbed her cheeks with her thumb and smiled, "I know I can." She cleared her throat, picked up her suitcase and said one last goodbye as a honk came from outside. Penny knew if anything, Mary had a great story to tell while they were traveling. The two waved to Mary as she waved back and was blowing kisses when she ducked into the big white van and they were gone.

The two didn't go shy on each other; they let the fact that there were only 5 days left push them through rounds and rounds of passion. Penny leaned back and rested against his sturdy form and he enveloped her in his arms and buried his nose into her hair.

They spent the rest of the day on the couch in each other's arms as if it were only natural. He kissed at her neck as she pecked at his wrists and before either knew it… they were upstairs in Sheldon's sanctuary… naked and writhing against one another in a display of pure passion and ecstasy. They slept in each other's arms… not but a single strand of blonde hair twisted together with a short, dark hair between them.

That was how they spent three more days; talking, touching, sexing, loving… living! It was by far the greatest days of both of their lives. They were a couple without worrying how smart he was or how messy she was. It was just a woman and a man loving one another for who they were.

* * *

**2 Days…**

Sheldon had asked Penny what she would like to do before the asteroid came. She sighed and said, "I want to see the ocean."

So… that's what they did. They headed to East Beach right off the tip of Galveston. There were no people, no seagulls; no dead animals washed on shore… just the ocean's waves, the sun, and the salty air. Sheldon had to admit… it was quite beautiful. Penny didn't have a bathing suit, so she just wore her bra and panties while Sheldon just wore his Flash boxers. For just a moment… the two forgot that they had 1-1/2 days left and Penny managed to drag Sheldon into the water. They stood knee high in the water (for Sheldon, anyway since it came up Penny's thighs) and Penny told Sheldon the first time she ever saw an ocean… was when she ran away to Pasadena with Kurt. Sheldon told her that the first time he got into an ocean… he cut his foot on a seashell and was too afraid to go back in… then he learned of all the 'goings on' that happens in the ocean and… the ocean lost all its appeal.

They rubbed sunscreen all over each other as the sun hit the top of the sky and Sheldon helped Penny build a very realistic castle made of sand. They had a small picnic with a small cooler Sheldon found in the basement and they shared more stories of the ocean (well… Penny did, anyway) and soon, the sun started to set. The two lovers sat on the sand and stared up at the pink, purple, and blue sky. The asteroid looking the size of a low hanging hot air balloon.

Sheldon looked down at Penny's hands dug in the dirt as she leaned back with her arms pushing her forward and he put his hand on hers. She looked over at him with her face stained with tears and they leaned in and bumped foreheads. What could be said? What words could be uttered when death was approaching so fast. He held her with one arm around her and couldn't stop his tears from falling.

* * *

**1 Day… **

Sheldon woke up to the sound of a man wailing downstairs. Soon, Sheldon could hear a tambourine and a faint guitar in the background of Radiohead's _4 Minute Warning_ Sheldon read on an iPod attached to speakers. Sheldon found Penny standing on the porch with the door wide open and she was staring up at the sky. She was fiddling with something in her hands and Sheldon felt worried.

"Penny?"

She turned around and clamped her hand and the object clinked in her grip, "Hey! I'm sorry. I was going to wake you up, but… I love watching you sleep. You're so…"

Sheldon smiled, "… beautiful?"

Penny grinned, "… quiet."

Sheldon furrowed his brow in fake anger and Penny laughed. She stepped up to him with a very dreaded look on her face. He knew why… he brushed her hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear much like he did the night she slept on the couch. He had to be the strong one, the one that didn't break down at the countdown to the final days of life. It made him feel strong; strong enough for the woman he loved. She lifted her hand that was clamped around an object and she opened it between the two of them. A paper balled up. She opened up the paper and showed the beautiful diamond ring and a golden band. Sheldon's eyes went wide and he looked at the somber blonde. She handed him the little piece of paper.

It was a note in his mother's perfect handwriting that simply said, "Down on your knee Shelly so the girl can finally say, Yes."

His eyes snapped up to Penny and she looked tired, but her lips curled into a smile. Sheldon was afraid, but when he saw the beautiful smile that made his heart leap every single time he saw it; fear was the last thing on his mind. He picked the diamond ring out of Penny's palm and went down on his knee, "Penelope Alexis Bellman, will you be my wife?"

Penny playfully scrunched up her face and stroked her chin as if thinking and made Sheldon roll his eyes. He scowled as she took more time and he let out a 'Woman!' before she smiled and looked down at him with watery eyes, "Of course I will, you big Whackadoodle!"

Before he put the ring on her finger, he cleared his throat, "That's DOCTOR Whackadoodle, thank you."

Penny shook her head as he slipped on the ring, "How about I call you MY Whackadoodle?"

He stood up and looked at her with pure, loving affection, "I'll accept that… as long as you don't mind me calling you MY Penny?"

He moved in for a kiss and she stopped him, "That's my Mrs. COOPER, thank you."

He took that in and his eyes drained of tears. She lovingly wiped them all away and she kissed her husband, with the band still firmly gripped in her hand.

* * *

The world shook and the gravity lost its strength as they hovered in each other's arms. Penny's eyes were shut tight as tears flew up off her face along with his… before the world went into a painful blackness of total destruction… the tears of both the lovers converged and everything was gone… but their love… their love will never die.


End file.
